Strong dollar helps boost travel overseas, overnight visits to U.S.

OTTAWA (CP) - A strong dollar helped boost overnight travel to the United States for the third straight quarter between April and June, while Canadians set another quarterly record for travel to countries other than their southern neighbour.
And Statistics Canada says that while fewer Americans came north, more overseas visitors came to Canada during the second quarter.

Canadian residents took about 3.9 million overnight trips to the United States between April and June, up 7.5 per cent from the same three months last year.

Typically, more Canadians visited New York state than any other while Florida came second; spending by Canadians declined in five of the Top 10 states but rose 2.5 per cent overall to about $2.9 billion.

Canadians set a new record for second-quarter travel overseas this year with nearly 1.6 million trips, or 5.5 per cent more than in the same quarter last year, with Britain, France and Cuba the most popular destinations.

Cuba was up 13.4 per cent while visits to Italy dropped 34.6 per cent; travel to China broke a four-year-old record in the second quarter.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

India's Shiite Muslim women can initiate divorce under new rule

Associated Press

NEW DELHI — Leaders of India's Shiite Muslim community have approved changes to the community's marriage laws to give women more grounds for divorce, a news report said Monday.

The All India Shia Personal Law Board said women can seek divorce on grounds of mental or physical torture, adultery, or being barred from studying or taking up a job, the Hindustan Times reported.

The law board, which is the top body for India's Shiites, rules on personal matters such as marriage, divorce and child custody.

India's constitution lets the country's main religious minorities — Christians and Muslims — use their own religious laws for personal matters.

Shiites are a minority within India's Muslims, who account for nearly 130 million of the country's roughly one billion people.

Sunni Muslims, who form the majority of Muslims in India, are governed by the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, which allows women the right to initiate divorce only on grounds of cruelty or impotence.

The All India Shia Personal Law Board's decision “ensures that the [Shiite] community is progressive and ensures equal rights for women,” the Hindustan Times quoted Zaheer Abbas Rizvi, general secretary of Shiite law board, as saying.

The new Shiite nikahnama, as Muslim marriage contracts are known, has the approval of Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the Iraqi cleric who is considered the religious head of the world's Shiites, the Hindustan Times said.

Officials from the board could not immediately be reached for comment.

The new contract also gives Shiite women the right to maintenance after a divorce until they become financially independent.

The agreement is traditionally signed at the wedding ceremony by the bride, groom and their witnesses, and now must also carry details of the professions of the betrothed and their salaries, as well details of dependents and any previous marriages.

Honda to sell it all under one roof

Idea is to tempt clients to buy more
GREG KEENAN
Globe and Mail

Honda Canada Inc. is moving to a new generation of retail outlets that will offer all its consumer products at one location -- from lawnmowers and snow throwers to motorcycles, cars and trucks.

The new concept, called Honda Centre in Quebec and Honda Powerhouse in the rest of Canada, is already in place at one Honda dealership in each of Quebec and Ontario and there are more to come, said Jim Miller, senior vice-president of Honda Canada.

"We're putting them together to reinforce the brand," Mr. Miller said. The creation of the Honda Ridgeline sport utility truck was essentially the final piece of the puzzle because now "we've got the truck that you can put your ATVs in back of," he said.

Honda's consumer products also include water pumps, portable generators, weed trimmers and marine outboard motors.

"It's a natural evolution to bring customers the Honda products they want, closer to where they live, work and play," added Honda spokeswoman Sandy Di Felice.

Market studies are under way in Calgary and Vancouver to determine whether the new concept makes sense. Calgary is a booming market with the growth in the oil patch, and Vancouver has for years been one of the strongest markets for Asian-based auto makers.

Dealers and sales people in stores offering all the company's consumer products will be trained across the entire range.

Industry analysts said it makes sense to put all the products under one roof so that anyone buying a generator can be encouraged to look at an all-terrain vehicle or a car.

Honda has 214 car dealers in Canada and 310 motorcycle dealers.

"I think it's something that is at least worth trying out," said Tony Krajewski, a consultant in the automotive practice at Deloitte.

The idea also appeals to Joe Zanchin, who owns one Honda dealership northwest of Toronto and another one that will be officially opened in a new auto mall in Vaughan tomorrow.

"I'm confident," Mr. Zanchin said.

"I think it's the way to do it."

He is dedicating about 10 acres of the new mall to Honda. Next to his Honda car and truck dealership will go a store for the generators, motorcycles and other products.

Next to that will be a dealership offering Acuras, Honda's luxury car brand.

He figures people travelling between the Honda and Acura outlets will stop in the Honda Powerhouse to check out the other consumer products and Honda accessories.

Honda sold 155,000 cars and trucks in Canada last year, along with 21,000 motorcycles, 23,400 all-terrain vehicles, 25,000 generators, 6,000 outboard engines, 4,000 weed trimmers and 6,700 snow throwers.

Wal-Mart finds a way into Indian market

Associated Press

NEW DELHI — India may soon have stores displaying the Wal-Mart brand despite government rules against foreign companies operating multi-product retail chains here.

The U.S. retail giant has tied up with India's top telecommunications company Bharti Airtel Ltd. in a joint venture that will set up hundreds of stores across the country, Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and CEO of the Indian company, said Monday.

“We have signed an MOU (memorandum of understanding) for a joint venture and a franchise agreement,” Mr. Mittal told reporters on the sidelines of an international business summit in New Delhi.

He declined to divulge the financial terms of the deal, but said it “will be a partnership of equals.”

It wasn't immediately clear if Wal-Mart Stores Inc. had given up on plans to set up its own stores in India, where resistance from political groups and domestic businesses has prevented the government from allowing foreign companies to operate multi-product retail chains.

“Wal-Mart was keen to get into India. I think they have chosen the right partner,” Mr. Mittal said. “It is going to be a large investment. . . We are going to be a big player in this market.”

The deal marks Bharti Airtel's first foray into the broader retail market and signals its desire to diversity into new areas of business. The company is already a popular brand in India, offering mobile phone services to more than 24 million users. Mr. Mittal said that Bharti Airtel hopes to learn from Wal-Mart how to operate in the retail market.

It would take several months before the first of the stores opened their doors.

“My own wish is August next year,” Mr. Mittal said. Eventually there will be “several hundred stores across the country [that] will probably carry both brand names.”

India's booming retail market, estimated at more than $200-billion (U.S.), is currently dominated by more than 12 million mom-and-pop shops. Large air-conditioned stores remain a rarity. Sales through company-owned network stores currently totals about $8-billion, or less than 5 per cent of the market.

Rising middle class incomes and an increase in demand for branded products, however, make India a compelling destination for global retail companies.

In recent years, several large Indian companies have diversified into retail business.

Reliance Industries Ltd., one of India's top business groups, has already lined up billion of dollars to invest in a retail chain that would also showcase large superstores like Wal-Mart. The company opened its first retail outlet in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad earlier this month.

Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani, who also was attending the business summit in New Delhi, welcomed the deal between Bharti Airtel and Wal-Mart, saying it will strengthen competition in the market.

“There is (enough space) for six to eight large players in this market,” Mr. Ambani told reporters.

Bharti Airtel's Mr. Mittal said the deal complies with existing government rules.

Although India does not allow foreign companies to open multi-product retail stores, they can still make wholesale purchases to support their global supply chains.

Wal-Mart already operates a procurement centre in the southern Indian city of Bangalore. The company is expected to source products worth nearly $2-billion from India for Wal-Mart stores worldwide this year. However, the figure is small, compared with $18-billion worth of goods that the company exports from China.

Mr. Mittal said the alliance will help the U.S. company scale up its procurement from India.

This art is strictly for the sewers

DEIRDRE KELLY
globeandmail.com

Art isn't just in the eye of the beholder. In Toronto, it may soon be underfoot.

Following such cities as Vancouver, Tokyo and Kyoto, which have decorated manhole covers on their streets, the city is inviting citizens to submit design ideas for Grounds for Art, a project to bring public art to the new streets of Regent Park.

Rebecca Ward of the city's culture division, who is overseeing Grounds for Art, said this week that, as of earlier this week, the city had received 91 submissions for the competition, which ends Monday. The object is to find three winning designs, one each for storm, water and sanitary sewer designations. The winners will each receive a cash prize of $1,800 from the city.

Proposals so far run the gamut from more literal ideas about the weather to more abstract images, some including text, inspired by the roundness of the cover itself.

The shape of the covers, which measure 624 millimetres in diameter, seems to be the only restriction. That, and the city's request that the images be in black and white, to complement the standard iron colour of the manhole covers.

While sewer art isn't unique to Toronto, what makes the city's project stand out is that the designs are for new covers and not pre-existing ones as has been the case in other urban centres. "These are new streets going into Regent Park," Ms. Ward says. "It's part of how public art is involving artists in infrastructure projects to build creativity into every aspect of city building."

That about has it covered.

CANADIAN STARS DEMAND ACTION FROM CRTC

ACTRA performers speak out at opening day of CRTC TV hearings

Canadian stars including Wendy Crewson, Sonja Smits, Fiona Reid, and R.H. Thomson spoke out today about the Canadian TV drama crisis during the first day of CRTC public hearings. ACTRA has been sounding the alarm about the crisis in Canadian television drama for years, and demands that the CRTC fix its disastrous 1999 Television Policy.

"Our culture defines us as a nation yet we can't hear or see ourselves when regulations encourage Canadian broadcasters to show American drama series and movies," said ReGenesis star Wendy Crewson. "Canadian broadcasters are filling their prime-time slots with hundreds of millions of dollars worth of U.S.-made drama programs. We've been shut out of our own home."

The CRTC commenced its review of the regulatory framework for Canadian over-the-air television on November 27, 2006. ACTRA formally presents before the CRTC on December 4, 2006.

"These hearings are crucial for fixing the destructive policy that removed spending requirements for Canadian broadcasters as they continue to spend an all-time high on American programming," said October 1970 star R. H. Thomson. "Canadian stories and dramas are being marginalized more than ever on our public airwaves. We are pleased to see that CRTC has recognized the problem and hope that they will now address it."

ACTRA's submission calls for regulations requiring Canada's private broadcasters to spend at least 7% of their advertising revenues on new Canadian English-language drama programming and to schedule at least two hours more of new Canadian dramas in real prime-time (Sunday to Thursday, 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.).

ACTRA (Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists) is a national organization of professional performers working in the English-language recorded media in Canada. ACTRA represents the interests of 21,000 members across Canada -the foundation of Canada's highly acclaimed professional performing community.

Girls are more ready for school, Statscan says

TENILLE BONOGUORE
Globe and Mail Update

By the time a child is three, the groundwork for their schooling abilities is laid and differences between girls and boys, rich and poor is already starting to appear, new research suggests.

In general, girls are more ready to learn at the age of five, says a Statistics Canada report which assessed children's readiness for school and then traced back two years looking for earlier behavioural hints.

At five years old, girls have better communication skills, attention and self-control levels, and are more independent in dressing, while boys display more curiosity.

Boys and girls were evenly matched for cleanliness, co-operative play, vocabulary and work effort.

A family's income also appears to have a strong impact on how ready a child will be for school, but it doesn't determine the entire picture, the researchers found.

Children from lower income households didn't understand as many words, couldn't communicate as well, had lower knowledge of numbers, and lower attention and co-operative play rates.

But the family's affluence had no impact on work effort, curiosity, self-control and independence of dress and cleanliness.

More important than income was positive interaction with parents. Children who talk to their parents and receive largely positive feedback — being encouraged to do one thing, instead of discouraged to do another — rated higher in communication, curiosity and co-operation.

Sport also helps develop communication skills, number knowledge and use of symbols, and children who attend kindergarten go to school with better copying and symbol use, the study found.

But there's a lot of flux between the ages of three and five.

At the age of three, affluent children ranked higher than less affluent children in work effort and self-control of behaviour, but these differences had disappeared two years later.

In the same age bracket, girls and boys start off with the same levels of self-control of behaviour, but girls surge ahead by the time they're five, developing more self-control than their counterparts.

Chinese currency hits new high against U.S. dollar

Associated Press

SHANGHAI, CHINA — China's currency rose to a fresh high against the U.S. dollar on Monday, as the central bank set its rate at 7.8402 yuan per dollar, the highest level since the current exchange system was set up in July 2005.

The People's Bank of China, the central bank, did not comment on the abrupt shift in the official parity rate — a weighted average of prices given by market makers, excluding the highest and lowest offers — to well above 7.8500.

But traders said the dollar's slide to a 19-month low against the euro in international markets Friday may have helped trigger the U.S. unit's slip against the yuan.

The dollar was at 7.8423 at around 7:30 GMT, down from Friday's close of 7.8525. On the automatic price-matching system, another way of measuring the exchange rate, it was at 7.8413 at 7:20 GMT.

That means Beijing has allowed the yuan's value to rise by about 3.3 per cent since it revalued the currency by 2.1 per cent in July 2005, severing the yuan's virtual peg with the dollar.

China allows the dollar-yuan rate to move no more than 0.3 per cent above or below the daily parity rate each day. Other currency pairs — the yuan's values against the yen, euro, Hong Kong dollar, and British pound — are allowed to move within 3 per cent of the parity rate each day.

Washington has been prodding Beijing to let its currency float more freely with market forces, arguing that controls keep the yuan undervalued, giving Chinese exporters a price advantage overseas and adding to China's trade surplus with the U.S., which hit a record $202-billion (U.S.) last year.

President George W. Bush faces growing pressure to counter that trend following the Democrats' capture of Congress in elections earlier this month.

American officials are expected to raise the currency issue in a top-level U.S. mission to Beijing next month, led by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Commerce Secretary Carlos Guiterrez. In an unusual move, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is expected to accompany the delegation.

China says it plans to allow market forces to play an increasingly important role in determining the yuan's value but that such changes must come gradually to allow Chinese financial institutions and manufacturers time to adapt.

Overall, the yuan has gained about 5.1 per cent in value against the dollar since before its revaluation in July 2005.

They’re doing it for the laughs

Sketches by four Asian American troupes tweak perceptions.

By Chrys Wu, LA Times Staff Writer
chrys.wu@latimes.com

Not many people would dare to make Genghis Khan the spokesman of a condom ad. But in Burbank, the leader of the Golden Horde is one of dozens of characters employed by four of Southern California's most prominent Asian American theatrical troupes to make a point: Asians can do comedy.

"TeleMongol" is the story of a fictitious Asian American network whose executives are given the chance to program shows by Asian Americans, for Asian Americans. They want to smash stereotypes, comment on pop culture and educate their audience, but they also need to make money for their primary investor — which leads to experiments in programming, as shown through various sketches.

"I wanted something kind of thematic tying the show together," says Philip Chung, a founding member of Lodestone Theatre Ensemble. He hatched the idea for the production after a season that wrapped with three dramatic plays in a row. A friend suggested that Chung seek comic relief, which Chung says seemed a brilliant idea, particularly since there's a "perception that Asian people really aren't funny.... I really think that this is a show that can stand on its own with any comedy show, whether it's Asian comedy or not."

He approached the troupes Cold Tofu, OPM and 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors because they were the best-known in town, and decided that a collaboration by such disparate groups would work best if it established a framework for a series of comedy sketches, much like "SCTV."

By doing so, "we would kind of have a better shot at putting together a cohesive whole, but you still get to do whatever you want," Chung says.

The show, which unites the four troupes for the first time, took shape during the course of nearly a year. Each group is represented by a producer, and each submitted sketches that were read, workshopped and approved with guidance from director Henry Chan, whose sitcom credits include "Moesha," "The King of Queens," "Scrubs" and " 'Til Death."

Chan is proud of his Chinese heritage, but when he was asked to direct "TeleMongol," he made his position clear: "The first thing I said is, 'I don't want us to get on a soapbox to preach,' because I never believed that was an effective way to do anything. First and foremost, we want to be funny," he says. "People always look at Asian American theater: 'You guys have a message.' ... I don't feel like we have to do anything. Let's just have fun."

Fun, of course, is one goal of comedy, but when it comes from ethnic ensembles, there's an expectation of purpose as well. "Asian Americans doing comedy is kind of political," says Greg Watanabe, of 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors. "Part of the reason Asian American theater even exists is because there's an absence of representation, or misrepresentation."

Chan adds that the show is "our way of poking at television in general, and Asian television in particular." Sometimes, the director says, the shows "are so self-righteous." By contrast, he describes "TeleMongol" as "funny, sexy, irreverent, insensitive." In other words, if you're still living at home, or you're tied to that invisible leash that some parents seem to have on their adult children, you are hereby warned: Your mom's not going to like your seeing this show.

There are 18 sketches in 70 minutes, and 14 cast members. With so many people involved, the writers must have wondered: Would too many comics spoil the punch lines?

"It's been a great experience, considering you have four groups, four different ways of working, four possibilities for disaster," says Chung. "The hardest thing has been coordination: Setting up meetings has been the toughest. Creativity has been the easiest."

All of the sketches were written expressly for "TeleMongol," but fans of the four ensembles will be familiar with some of the characters, such as nail salon owner cum relationship expert Dr. Pho, whose thickly accented "What's your problem!" had the audience at Saturday's premiere shrieking with laughter.

The part, created and played by Cold Tofu member Wanru Tseng, is a stereotype. But it's also a touchstone — anyone who's ever had his or her nails done at one of the many shops in town has probably been given advice by the manicurist, most likely a Vietnamese woman, whether asked for or not.

"TeleMongol" also has something you don't see often in mainstream media: hot Asian guys.

"It's always bad when a costumer comes up and asks you, 'Are you comfortable in a thong?' " jokes Watanabe, who plays an adult-film star in the sketch "Project Apple: (PSA)." The piece is a public service announcement that plays on the dichotomous stereotypes of Asians as sex objects and Asians as highly educated people.

Ewan Chung, looking buff in a Chippendales-style outfit, plays the model in "Date or No Date," written by Cold Tofu cast member Denise Iketani, in a twist on the TV game show "Deal or No Deal." Though Chung's role is to be eye candy, the sketch itself examines the "issues women in general have to face looking for a guy these days," Iketani says. Even if people don't admit it, looks, income and job prestige matter when it comes to seeking a mate. But the sketch points out that it's unwise to make assumptions based on these criteria alone. "There's definitely commentary, there's many layers to what's going on — not just ethnically, but gender-wise, even perhaps sexual preference."

In "Asian Surreal Life," Cold Tofu member Corinne Chooey does a sendup of Bai Ling, while Watanabe and OPM member Charles Kim do impressions of George Takei and Sammo Hung, respectively. A slightly deeper-than-average knowledge about Asian movie and TV actors will help audiences get more out of it. (Hint: Before going to the show, do a Web search for Rick Yune and read the entries about Bai Ling on GoFugYourself.com.)

But the idea behind "TeleMongol" tries to reinforce a universal truth of comedy: When done well, it transcends barriers and makes audiences see the world in a different way.

"People should go to this show because it's funny," Iketani says. "I think it's a little bit different — I think, if we're talking about a multiracial audience, they're going to be seeing Asians doing things they don't usually see us do."

Tears, and in between by Lucie Chan

November 22- January 20, 2007

Lucie Chan, Tears, and In Between (detail), 2006. Drawing installation: charcoal, paper cutouts

Drawing comparisons to groundbreaking artists such as Ed Pien and William Kentridge in addition to a nomination for the prestigious Sobey Art Award in 2006, Lucie Chan is a Canadian artist to watch!

Born in Guyana and educated in Canada, Halifax now provides the backdrop for Chan's delicate and evocative drawing-based art practice. Manifesting itself in many forms -charcoal sketches, paper installations, handmade animations - Chan's artwork articulates themes of longing, rootlessness and diaspora.

For her site-specific installation at the Foreman Art Gallery, Tears, and in between, Chan shapes accumulated drawings into giant teardrop form sculptures which she suspends from the ceiling of the gallery creating a veritable forest of dark figures set in stark white territory. Many of the suspended sculptures house animations based on Chan's elegant drawings.

While developing Tears, and in between, Chan drew on her experiences interviewing recent immigrants to Canada. Chan's poetic animations are based on her interactions with these individuals and their personal histories and experiences. Out of the somber darkness and ambiguity of the teardrop drawings her delicate animations provide the only colour in the exhibit and represent the hope that Chan's subjects have for their futures in a new country.

Foreman Art Gallery of Bishop's University
2600 College Street, Sherbrooke, QC
gallery open Tuesday-Saturday, noon to 5pm

Sony finds defect in Cyber-shot digital cameras

Sony Corp., Tokyo, Japan, said on Friday its Cyber-shot compact digital cameras might not work in warm and humid areas and that it would repair any affected cameras free of charge, reports Reuters. The liquid crystal displays in eight models that went on sale from September 2003 to January 2005 may not show images correctly or the cameras may not be able to take photos at all, Sony said in a statement.

Of the over 1 million models sold, Sony expects 4,000 could need repairs, the company said. Sony found similar defects in other digital and video cameras in October last year, when it discovered condensation could seep into the gadgets and damage the charge-coupled device, a chip used to capture images, reports Reuters.

The problem, which Sony does not expect to affect its earnings, comes after the electronics maker swung to a quarterly loss due to the cost of recalling millions of computer batteries.

Goh Ballet NUTCRACKER Comes to Whistler!

Event: Goh Ballet’s Nutcracker
Venue: Maurice Young Millennium Place in Whistler
Dates: Friday & Saturday, December 22 and 23, 2006
Times: 4 pm matinees and 8 pm evening shows both days
Admission: $37.50 for adults & $17.50 for children under 12
Tickets: On sale December 05 at 604.935.8410, at the
Millennium Place box office or online at www.ticketmaster.ca

Whistler, BC — Nutcracker is coming to the stage this Christmas, as the first professional-level ballet production of this traditional favourite in Whistler. Performed by the internationally acclaimed Goh Ballet of Vancouver, and presented by Millennium Place, the Nutcracker will delight and charm all ages.

“We are thrilled to be presenting the Goh Ballet and the Nutcracker,” said Mr. Dennis Marriott, general manager, Maurice Young Millennium Place. “There is already a palpable buzz and excitement in the community about the upcoming performances. It’s the perfect signature event for our North Pole Central – a Real Whistler Family Holiday – entertainment series.”

Evening performances at 8 pm and matinees at 4 pm of the Nutcracker will take place Friday and Saturday, December 22 and 23. To accommodate the intimacy that the Millennium Place stage offers, captivating multimedia components and enchanting spoken words will be added to the dazzling choreography of the ballet. The Goh Ballet’s Nutcracker promises to breathe new life into this timeless holiday tradition.

“The calibre of our dancers is known all over the world and Whistler’s leading position as an international destination is the perfect setting for our Nutcracker,” said Mr. Choo Chiat Goh, artistic director of the Goh Ballet. “We are delighted to work with Millennium Place to bring the Nutcracker to fruition.”

Tickets for the Nutcracker will go on sale Tuesday, December 5th. Prices are $37.50 for adults and $17.50 for children (under 12). Special student/senior and matinee prices are also available. To purchase call 604-935-8410 or visit the Millennium Place box office or ticketmaster.ca.

About the Goh Ballet
The Goh Ballet is an internationally renowned dance academy established in 1980 in Vancouver, Canada. Its graduates perform with some of the most prestigious companies in the world including The National Ballet of Canada, American Ballet Theatre and San Francisco Ballet. Students of the Goh Ballet are also recognized among the best in the world having captured numerous international medals, including top prizes from Genée International and Prix de Lausanne, the most prestigious dance competition on the planet. Today, the Goh Ballet continues its tradition of excellence by producing professional-level performances for audiences throughout BC and around the world. Visit www.GohBallet.com.

About Millennium Place
Maurice Young Millennium Place is Whistler's centre for arts, culture and inspiration. Millennium Place produces programs such as Real Canadian in Whistler that celebrate the heart and soul of Canada, our people, through performing and visual arts, cultural activities and inspirational events. Millennium Place also produces North Pole Central, a Real Whistler Family Holiday which this season runs December 16th – 30th.

For more information about Millennium Place programs and events visit www.myPlaceWhistler.org.

For more information, please contact:

Dennis Marriott, General Manager
Maurice Young Millennium Place
604 935 8411
dmarriott@myPlaceWhistler.org

First Encounter - An Exhibition of Small Works - With Children In Mind

November 30 - December 23, 2006

Artist Reception: Thursday, November 30, 6-8 pm
Kids Art Party: Saturday, December 9, 2-4 pm

Diane Farris Gallery is delighted to present First Encounter, a group show of artworks created or chosen for young children and the young at heart by gallery artists and guests.

We believe that those first, early encounters with the arts become life-long memories that prompt hobbies, careers, and new ways of seeing.

Children are especially welcome to attend this exhibit as it has been created with them in mind and will be hung at a lower level for their enjoyment. This fun, salon style show is comprised of a large number of pieces that are certain to lift your spirits and perhaps provide you with a first gift of art for a little one in your life!

On Saturday December 9, the Diane Farris Gallery will host a Kids Art Party where children are invited to create their own small masterpieces with materials we supply - including the terrific new Chihuly Art Kits. Please drop in between 2 and 4 pm for a delightful afternoon and take home the work of your very own prodigy.

Artists will be on hand to help!!! Cookies & Refreshments will be served!

Artists include: Alex Abdilla, Shannon Belkin, Roberta Bondar, David Burns, Gary Cody, Judith Currelly, Michael Dennis, John Dennison, Angela Grossmann, Amy-Claire Huestis, Kathryn Jacobi, Elzbieta Krawecka, Justin Ogilvie, Natty Saidi, Xue Mo, and special guests.

Plus - Dale Chihuly's new "Chihuly Art Kits" for kids!

COME BY AND BE MERRY WITH US!

Diane Farris Gallery, 1590 West 7th Avenue, Vancouver

This exhibition can be viewed on-line at: www.dianefarrisgallery.com/exhibit/first_encounter/press_release.htm

Tel: (604) 737-2629 Fax: (604) 737-2675

No business model for HDTV, CBC tells CRTC

GRANT ROBERTSON
Globe and Mail Update

GATINEAU, QUE. — As television shifts towards high-definition channels and programs, broadcasters are finding no business model for HDTV and are instead being forced to foot the massive bill, the head of CBC warned Monday.

Speaking on the opening day of a two-week regulatory probe into the state of Canada's television sector, CBC president Robert Rabinovich said advertisers are not willing to pay more for commercials on high-definition channels or during HD programs.

That has left Canadian broadcasters struggling to figure out how the industry will pay for the massive shift towards high-definition, which requires new infrastructure and programming costs that are roughly 25 per cent higher.

“There's no evidence either in Canada or the United States that we have found for advertisers willing to pay a premium for a program that's in HD,” Mr. Rabinovich said. “So basically they're saying if you want to shoot in HD, that's your business, we're not going to pay you more.”

The regulatory hearings being held by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission are the first major review of the rules governing TV broadcasters since the late 90s.

CBC was the first of Canada's broadcasters to appear at the hearing, painting a dire financial picture for the industry during two hours of testimony. The CBC, which gets slightly more than half its revenue from commercials and the rest from government funding, said ad dollars are eroding from the industry as audiences migrate to other forms of entertainment such as the Internet, and advertisers follow the migration.

Faced with the transition of TV to high-definition, the broadcasters are proposing various plans that ask the regulator to drop some or all of their over-the-air signals. Those are the free broadcasts that are available without cable or satellite. The industry argues that between 80 and 90 per cent of Canadians are cable or satellite subscribers, so the conventional broadcasting method can soon be eliminated. That could save costs for the networks, who would otherwise have to spend millions updating the infrastructure.

While some networks want to drop those altogether, the CBC is proposing a hybrid model, where it would build more than 40 digital over-the-air transmitters, capable of carrying the HD signal, in urban markets. CBC executives say most of Canada's remaining over-the-air customers live in cities. The public broadcaster has already built eight of these in various cities.

The transition to HD has been likened to the shift from black and white to colour, or the move to stereo in the 80s. Mr. Rabinovich said the networks won't see any increase in their business despite the higher cost, so the CBC is arguing the regulator should allow the conventional broadcasters to start charging cable and satellite companies to carry their signal.

The feeds from conventional broadcasters, such as CBC, CTV, Global, City TV and others, are currently provided free. Specialty cable channels such as Showcase, HGTV and TSN are allowed to collect a fee as compensation for their lower placement on the dial and, arguably, the smaller ad revenue they attract because of their channel location.

All broadcasters are pushing for these fees to be introduced, which could increase a monthly cable bill by between $3 and $7 by some industry estimates, depending on what the rate is set at.

It is likely that the regulator would require the networks to pour more funding into Canadian content and productions if it did agree to the fee.

The CBC said Monday it supports that concept.

However, the industry has not come to a consensus on what the fee should be set at. CanWest has proposed a monthly rate of 50 cents per subscriber per network. Mr. Rabinovich said he did not know what the ideal rate should be, if the regulator decides the idea has merit.

“The conventional broadcasters agree on a fee, they don't agree on the reasons for the fee and they don't agree on the size,” he said. “We think that should be done on each [broadcaster's] individual theory.”

CRTC commissioners questioned CBC executives over whether the networks were using the fee concept as a way to get the regulator to “skate them back onside” in terms of profitability. Mr. Rabinovich said no, because costs are going up regardless due to HD content, while ad revenue is falling.

The first two days of hearings will see the broadcasters present, including Global and CTV Monday afternoon. Cable and satellite providers, who are opposed to the fee idea, are scheduled to speak Wednesday and Thursday in Gatineau.

Panda poo paper yields profits for Thai zoo keepers

CHIANG MAI, Thailand (AP) - There's the Panda Express fast-food chain, mascot Jing Jing for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the forthcoming animated movie Kung Fu Panda and even a Mexican rock band named after the cuddly bear. Not to be outdone, Thailand has come up with yet another, seemingly unlikely way to capitalize on the globally loved, bamboo-munching animal - panda poo. When keepers of the country's panda couple - Chuang Chuang and Lin Hui - tired of disposing the 25 kilograms of feces daily produced by the duo, Prasertsak Buntragulpoontawee came up with the idea of turning it into notebooks, fans, bookmarks and key chains.

"At first the Chinese were very skeptical," said the head of Chiang Mai Zoo's panda unit, referring to the proprietary attitude China takes toward its iconic animal.

But the multicoloured paper products have proven hot selling-items at the zoo, with the the equivalent of about C$9,350 earned to date helping balance the accounts of panda keeping.

The Thai government pays the equivalent of $285,000 a year to China's Wulong Panda Research Institute to rent the pandas, who, depending on the weather, reside in either a $1-million, air-conditioned cage or an extensive, fan-cooled outdoor enclosure ringed by a mini-replica of China's Great Wall.

Panda poo paper production involves a daylong process of cleaning the feces, boiling it in a soda solution, bleaching it with chlorine and drying it under the sun. Experimentation continues on how to reduce the chemicals now used.

Prasertsak said he was inspired by sa paper, or mulberry leaf paper, a traditional, local product which has proven a highly popular gift item in recent years.

"We tried selling it on markets outside but so far with not so much success," he said.

"But in the zoo, when people see real pandas and then their product they're excited and buy."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Cellphone TV to reach mass audience in 2008, Ericsson predicts

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) - Watching television on cellphones will be a mass phenomenon in 2008, Sweden's LM Ericsson predicted, saying the maker of telecommunications gear will work closely with Japan's Sony Corp. to develop new media solutions for wireless connections. About one third of the world's cellphone users will regularly be watching TV broadcasts on their handsets in two years, which will open up lucrative opportunities for content producers and carriers, said Per Nordlof, Ericsson's director of Product Strategy, at a joint press briefing with Sony in Stockholm.

The two companies already have a joint venture, Sony Ericsson, for making mobile phones, but said they also see numerous opportunities for co-operation to cash in on the expected boom in mobile TV.

"It plays to the strength of both companies," said Eric Siereveld, Sony Europe's director of Professional Solutions.

The two companies demonstrated a number of solutions they think will soon become commonplace, including systems where video and pictures can easily be sent between a regular TV and a mobile phone, allowing friends and family members to share footage at the press of a button.

Such solutions - based on the Digital Living Network Alliance, a cross-industry standard for allowing digital devices to share content through a home network - could hit the market by the second half of 2007, Nordlof said.

Ericsson and Sony will also work together to create new software to power such DLNA-based home networks, he said.

Ericsson also announced a contract with Belgian phone operator Proximus to provide an end-to- end solution for mobile-TV broadcasts. The service includes what Ericsson hailed as the "world's fastest channel selector solution" for mobile TV, which lets users surf between channels by pressing a number key on the handset - similar to using a remote control.

"This saves time and brings the mobile TV experience closer to that of a home TV experience," Ericsson said in a statement.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Japanese automakers' domestic production mostly up in October

TOKYO (AP) - Most major Japanese automakers boosted production in Japan in October from the previous year, the companies said Monday, getting a strong lift from growing global demand for fuel-efficient models. Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE:TM), Japan's top automaker, said its domestic production rose 15.9 per cent on year to 364,777 vehicles, marking the 14th consecutive monthly gain.

But Japan's No. 2 automaker Nissan Motor Co. (NASDAQ:NSANY) saw its production in Japan for that month inch down 0.5 per cent on year to 101,619 vehicles. Nissan has an alliance with Renault SA of France.

Domestic output at Honda Motor Co. (NYSE:HMC) jumped 23.7 per cent in October on year to 122,814 vehicles, marking the fifth straight month of on-year growth.

Mazda Motor Corp., an affiliate of Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F) of the United States, said its October output in Japan rose 17.8 per cent from a year earlier to 84,116 vehicles, gaining for the 12th consecutive month.

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Japan production rose 16.6 per cent on year to 68,389 vehicles.

The rise in production underscores overseas users' appetite for Japanese automakers' models with good mileage amid surging oil prices.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

New rules for Alberta basement suites

(CBC) - The Alberta government has issued new safety standards for basement suites in homes.

The new rules apply to any self-contained unit in a single family home.

The rules - which include standards for fire protection, windows, ceiling height and smoke detectors - will apply to newly constructed suites at the end of the year. Existing suites will have until the end of 2008 to comply.

Municipal Affairs Minister Rob Renner said such suites provide affordable housing in communities with low vacancy rates. "The building code police are not going to be going up and down the block looking for illegal suites to shut down," he said.

"I suspect some of the existing suites may be regulated out of existence. But at the same time, I think there is a number of people that may look at the opportunities that developing their basement may provide to offset their mortgage."

Renner said municipalities will continue to use zoning regulations to decide when and where basement suites will be allowed.

© the CBC, 2006

PREMIER TURNS SOD AT GUANGDONG-BC PACIFIC GATEWAY PARK

GUANGZHOU – Premier Gordon Campbell helped celebrate British Columbia’s special relationship with its sister province in China by turning the sod today on the Guangdong-British Columbia Pacific Gateway Park, which will also serve as a showcase for outdoor wood products from B.C.

“No part of China shares as many economic and personal ties to British Columbia as Guangdong province, which has provided more immigrants to our province than any other part of China,” said Campbell. “In fact, Guangdong province has declared November 25 as B.C. day – a great honour for British Columbia.”

As the Garden capital of China, Guangzhou is the ideal location for B.C. to showcase the durability of our outdoor wood products such as pressure-treated Hemlock, SPF and Western Red Cedar, and tap into new markets,” continued Campbell.

Campbell also opened the Chung Ai Photographic Society Exhibition, a show of 130 photographs of British Columbia created by B.C. photographers.

“This display of talent by B.C. photographers will show off our province and help promote British Columbia as a tourism destination. The Chung Ai Photographic Society is doing its part to strengthen the cultural ties between our provinces,” said Campbell. “Our province had the great honour of hosting a similar exhibit of Guangdong photography in October 2006 during the visit of Governor Huang Huahua and his delegation.”

Much of the visit to Guangdong is about extending the cultural ties with British Columbia. Campbell is also attending the opening ceremonies of the Guangdong International Tourism and Culture Festival, an event attended by 60,000 people and likely viewed by 95 million. British Columbia performers at the event include Whistler vocalist/songwriter Ali Milner, Delta’s country/folk music group The Higgins Family, and 12 youth dancers from across B.C.

Tomorrow – B.C. Day in Guangdong – the Premier will run in the Guangzhou Terry Fox Run, visit the city of Jiangmen, and attend a cultural performance by Guangdong Sister Provinces/States.

Campbell is in Guangdong as part of a mission to Japan and China, including the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, to promote British Columbia as Canada’s Pacific Gateway. This is his third mission to Asia, following visits to China and India in 2003, and China and Japan in 2001.

Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg Public Art Opportunity

Artists are invited to submit first-stage proposals in a two-stage call for a permanent, site-responsive public art installation in Assiniboine Park.

Deadline for proposals is February 2, 2007.

The selected artist will create a permanent artwork in the area of the Footbridge in Assiniboine Park in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Park just celebrated its one-hundredth anniversary. Although designed in the English Landscape Style the Park is firmly rooted in the Prairie landscape. Assiniboine Park is a vital gathering place, and the site for the artwork installation is located in an important transition area.

This national call is open to Canadian Artists.

For full details on the proposal call please go to www.winnipegarts.ca and follow the public art links. For further information please call Tricia Wasney at 943-7668, or email twasney@winnipegarts.ca .

Thai military says martial law can be lifted in some areas

Associated Press

Bangkok — Thailand's military chiefs have agreed that martial law imposed after their coup in September can be lifted in parts of the country, army commander General Sondhi Boonayaratkalin said Monday.

The armed forces chiefs, who staged a bloodless coup against the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, said it will be up to the interim civilian government that they appointed to act on their recommendation.

Martial law was imposed in an effort to ensure stability after the coup, which was the culmination of months of political tension after a protest movement arose early this year demanding Mr. Thaksin's ouster because of alleged corruption and abuse of power.

Since then, Mr. Thaksin has been vague about his political plans, while the military and the government it appointed have said they fear instability that could be instigated by the former prime minister's supporters.

Gen. Sondhi, who heads the Council for National Security, said that the partial lifting of martial law was the military's recommendation, but that it was up to the government to enact and announce it.

Army spokesman Colonel Akara Thiprot said martial law would not be lifted in areas where the situation was still considered unstable. He said these included border provinces in the south facing an Islamic insurgency, and provinces in the northeast and north, considered strongholds of support for Mr. Thaksin, as well as Bangkok, the capital.

Gen. Sondhi said the government should make sure it has laws or other legal means to allow security forces to maintain order after lifting martial law.

one cool word magazine

one cool word magazine is currently seeking your:
art
writing
music
spoken word

(we are looking for all genres in all categories, the more diverse and original the better. some ideas: paintings, drawings, photography, digital artwork, sculpture, fashion design, tattoos, stageplay, screenplay, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, essay, rant, commentary, indie, emo, acoustic, rock, pop, funk, jazz, rap, reggea, experimental, hardcore, vocal spoken word, spoken word with music, ETC. if we missed something, please send it to us anyways!).

we are a vancouver based art & literary magazine with a CD compilation of music and spoken word.

DEADLINE FOR WINTER 2006 ISSUE: December 15, 2006
MUST BE A RESIDENT OF THE GREATER VANCOUVER AREA TO SUBMIT

details: www.onecoolword.com and click on "submit"

Tracy Stefanucci
Co-Editor, Submissions Coordinator
one cool word magazine
www.onecoolword.com
604.690.4164

DRAGON COMPANY LAUNCH FILM SLATE IN 2007

Invitation for Writers to Submit Scripts, Treatments, Synopses and/or Concepts for Development

Zoltán Barabás, Co-Producer of the award-winning film The Entrance (www.theentrancemovie.com ), announces preparations to expand the activities of his production enterprise, the DRAGON company.

the DRAGON company will build of slate of 6 - 10 films for production 2007 - 2010. In order to build its slate, the DRAGON company is accepting thriller/horror genre submissions for:

o Screenplays for feature film production,
o Teleplays for television show production, and
o Synopses and concepts for film and TV development.

Contact:
Zoltán Barabás
T 604 562 5821
F 604 876 5304
E zoltan@zoltanbarabas.com

TV networks want new rules

GRANT ROBERTSON
Globe and Mail Update

A federal review of the television sector that begins Monday in Gatineau, Que., is being called one of the most crucial meetings of the Canadian industry since TV made the leap from black and white to colour.

Operators of the conventional national networks, including CanWest Global Communications Corp., CTV Inc. and CHUM Ltd. (which is in the process of being acquired by CTV's parent, Bell Globemedia, which also owns The Globe and Mail) want the federal broadcast regulator to let them charge cable and satellite companies for their signals.

They also want the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to loosen the restrictions on TV advertising, allowing more commercial minutes per hour and putting fewer limits on product placements and infomercials.

CanWest Global, whose TV business has slumped in recent years, is expected to take the most vocal stance.

New technology — such as streaming Internet broadcasts and Personal Video Recorders that allow audiences to skip ads easily — have the networks worried about eroding fortunes.

“In the face of increasing and accelerating fragmentation from regulated and unregulated competitors, we require access to this [fee for carriage] revenue source,” CanWest told the CRTC in a filing prior to the hearing.

While the networks are expected to paint a bleak picture of their futures, National Bank Financial analyst Adam Shine said the industry is by no means dying.

“One still can't write the obituary for conventional TV for the foreseeable future,” Mr. Shine said in a research note. “Though steadily eroding, the power of the medium to draw large audiences and offer advertisers unparalleled reach remains.”

However, analysts say regulatory changes are needed to ensure its viability in the future.

The proposed changes could mean a significant increase in revenue.

Mr. Shine estimates CanWest could get $20-million to $30-million in additional advertising dollars if the rules governing advertising are loosened.

The introduction of subscriber fees could mean another $13-million to $17-million.

The debate has splintered the industry.

Cable provider Rogers Communications Inc. calls the networks' bid for subscription fees a cash grab. It argues they could add from $3 to $7 to monthly cable bills, potentially angering consumers.

Cable and satellite providers say they will instead back the networks in their bid to have ad rules changed.

“If you're concerned about Canadian broadcasters, cut them some slack on advertising, cut them some slack on product placements,” said Ken Englehart, Rogers' vice-president of regulatory affairs.

Simply allowing more commercials won't likely fix the problem in the eyes of the major networks though, who argue cable specialty channels have an advantage.

Specialty channels — those higher up the dial such as HGTV and Showcase — were granted the right to collect subscription fees when they began broadcasting. That money was intended to make up for the lower ad revenue that came from not being carried on primary cable packages.

But the proliferation of digital cable and satellite into Canadian homes has brought specialty channels to larger audiences, CTV president Rick Brace said.

“If subscription fees are good for specialty and they're also getting advertising minutes per hour as well, then maybe the commission also has to look at the conventional TV business being treated equally,” he said.

The last TV policy review of this magnitude concluded in 1999. Those hearings focused largely on funding for Canadian productions.

This time around, subscription fees, advertising rules and the cost of switching to high-definition television (HDTV) feeds will dominate the discussion.

Should the CRTC give the networks what they want, the regulator will likely seek a tradeoff that would require them to pump more money into Canadian productions, while increasing the amount of on-air promotions for domestic television programs, observers say.

GODS, DEMONS AND YOGIS

This interdisciplinary work highlight the expressive potential of Indian Classical dance and music and the contemporary relevance of traditional tales. This piece brings together some of Vancouver's finest talent in music, dance and theatre in a collaborative venture.

Sunday, December 3
Roundhouse Community Center
181 Roundhouse Mews, Vancouver
7 PM

STRINGS AND SKINS

South Delta Jazz Festival presents two of Vancouver's finest world music ensembles (Sangha and Ta Ki Ta) in one amazing concert! Indian and persian music meet with jazz and workd rhythms to create new musical traditions.

Friday, December 1
St. Mark's-Trinity Church
1805 Larch (at 2nd Ave), Vancouver
7:30 PM

Shelters packed, planes grounded as snow hits B.C., cold grips Prairies

VANCOUVER (CP) - First it was the rain. Now, it's snow that's causing havoc on Canada's usually wet coast. Two weeks ago, torrential rains triggered boil-water advisories for more than one million people. For 900,000 of them, that warning remains in place.

On Saturday, wet snow began to fall on the Vancouver region, prompting homeless shelters to scramble to find space for hundreds of street dwellers and transport officials to warn of delays.

Snow is forecast through Wednesday with the possibility of sun on Tuesday.

Such conditions led to homeless shelters being filled to bursting in Vancouver and Victoria.

"Certainly, it's been very busy for the Salvation Army in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, there's no doubt about that," said Salvation Army Capt. John Murray.

He said as of Sunday, the army had not had to implement its extreme cold weather measures in Vancouver.

"We anticipate that over the next 72 hours as the temperature does drop, those beds are going to become critically, extremely important to the people on the streets," Murray said.

In Victoria, the demand for beds led to the opening of a church in neighbouring Esquimalt to provide another 25 beds above what Victoria can offer.

At Vancouver International Airport on Sunday afternoon, most arrivals were either late or cancelled. Virtually no flights departed on time, if at all.

Spokeswoman Jody Holgate said many regional flights had been cancelled due to the weather.

Through much of Sunday, the airport was alternating between its two runways, with one in use as the other was being cleared.

"As long as it keeps snowing at the current rate, we'll continue with that," Holgate said. "That ensures there's always one runway that's clear."

For a variety of storm-related reasons, about 14,000 thousand B.C. Hydro customers were without power throughout the Lower Mainland on Sunday.

Slippery road conditions on Sunday morning were being blamed for at least one death.

In the Vancouver suburb of Surrey, RCMP say a passenger was killed when a vehicle crossed the centre line and was struck by an oncoming vehicle.

It was one of many serious accidents throughout the province.

While the temperature in Vancouver hovered around freezing, in northern British Columbia the mercury plummeted.

At Fort St. John airport, 1,600 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, a high of -26C was forecast for Monday.

The bitter cold that has gripped most of the Prairies for days may have been a factor in at least three deaths in Alberta.

The body of a homeless man was found Saturday morning on a Calgary street.

The bodies of a couple who had been living in a school bus outside Edmonton were found, frozen solid, last Thursday.

Shelters around Alberta made extra beds available on the weekend to try to ensure the homeless had a place to stay warm.

The home of the world-famous Calgary Stampede was being used as a temporary overflow emergency shelter.

Winter made an early, bone-chilling appearance in Saskatchewan with Regina and area included in a broad storm watch issued by Environment Canada.

Up to 10 centimetres of snow was expected Sunday through Monday over southern Saskatchewan.

Frigid conditions were expected to continue Monday as the disturbance over British Columbia headed toward Saskatchewan.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

ASIAN POP - Do you think we're sexy?

- By Jeff Yang, Special to SF Gate
URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/g/a/2006/11/22/apop.DTL

As George Clooney celebrates his second time around as People's "Sexiest Man Alive," Jeff Yang looks at the status of Asian men in American culture. From Gedde Watanabe in "16 Candles" to Daniel Dae Kim in "Lost," it seems like the image of the Asian male has come a long way, baby. Or ... has it?

Flipping through my glossy copy of People's annual "Sexiest Man Alive" issue (Double sized! Over 200 hunks-a hunks-a burnin' love inside!) has led me to a couple of quick conclusions. The first is that George Clooney is, indeed, a piping-hot serving of manwich. I mean, I'm a straight, married male with a kid, but I can still see how if I were of a different gender or sexual orientation, I'd have great difficulty throwing Clooney out of bed for eating whole-grain Tuscan crostini.

The second is that, even so, Clooney is not even close to my pick for the Sexiest Man Alive. In fact, I wouldn't even call him the sexiest man in the Nov. 27 edition of People. That's because the issue also contains Yul Kwon, described by People's editors in interviews as a Sexiest Man Alive "finalist" and profiled in the mag's section on "Sexy Men in Sexy Environments."

Clooney is smart, funny, owns an Italian villa, and is the kind of sharp dressed man that ZZ Top correctly noted every woman's crazy 'bout. But Kwon is another creature entirely -- a genetic specimen so undeniably ideal (at least in comparison to yours truly, as both wife and mother have hinted) that he prompts thoughts of the classic comedy "Twins."

This is Yul: classically sculpted features, egg-carton abs, able to reconstruct civilization on a desert island with nothing more than a pair of coconuts and a feral chicken. And this is me: laughably doughy features, egg-shaped physique, desperately trying to file a piece on sexy Asian guys before my editor sends burly men to snap my fingers like takeout chopsticks. It shouldn't be difficult to identify who's the Arnie and who's the Danny in this comparison.

"The thing about Yul that's compelling is that he's smart, he's strong, he's a leader, but he knows when to show strength and when to be restrained, and God, look at those abs," says Cynthia Wang, People's associate L.A. bureau chief. "Everyone was saying, 'Wow, we can't miss that man, the way he looks, the way he behaves -- he's got to be part of this issue.' And as both an Asian American and, admittedly, a reality TV junkie, it's great to see that."

There are other Asian men in the "Sexiest Man Alive" issue, too -- including "Harold and Kumar"'s John Cho, "Lost"'s Daniel Dae Kim and Hong Kong pop idol/"Grudge 2" star Edison Chen. In fact, if you take it at face value that People magazine is a reflection of, well, people and their attitudes toward mainstream popular culture, you'd have to say that the image of Asian men has taken an enormous leap forward in the two decades since the "Sexiest Man" issue was inaugurated (with the original honor going to Mel Gibson -- lo, how the mighty have fallen).

Not So Fast, a Bit More Furious?

Of course, not everyone buys into that line of reasoning. Take for example Ethan Lee, UC Berkeley grad and creator of a buzzed-about new Web comic called "Single Asian Female," which he calls an attempt to encapsulate some of what he learned in his Asian American Studies classes into "a form that's easy to read and understand."

If it seems a little weird for guy to be writing a strip called "Single Asian Female," well, Lee says it's because he wanted to talk about issues that could only be effectively expressed from the point of view of an Asian American woman -- "like the story about Asian females getting hit on by white guys with Asian fetishes."

Also, as some on the Web have suggested, people are a lot more likely to read a strip with an Asian American female protagonist -- just like they're more willing to watch news with an Asian American anchor, or more likely to accept an Asian woman as a romantic lead.

"Asian men are still stereotyped as geeky, sexless losers, including by some Asian American women," says Lee. "I remember that even in my Asian American Studies classes, there were two or three Asian women who bragged how they only date white men. I distinctly remember one of them saying, 'I'm afraid an Asian man might beat me,' and another saying, 'Well, I've always been attracted to the Abercrombie and Fitch model type.'"

But, I ask him, is that really representative? Even if there are attitudes like that out there, it's hard to think that those are really the norm today. Certainly things have changed in the past 20 years, with society moving -- slowly -- toward a more progressive, inclusive standard of beauty, right?

Lee doesn't think so. "Go to any newsstand, and just stand back and look at the magazine rack," he says. "Over 90 percent of the people looking back are going to be white. If you exclude Beyonce, Oprah and a bunch of athletes, you're talking more like 99 percent. That's what Asian Americans internalize when they think about who's sexy, about who they want to get with. They think: 'White people are sexy, and we want to get it on with a guy like George Clooney.'"

Jeff Adachi, San Francisco public defender and producer/director of "The Slanted Screen," a documentary exploring the evolution of the Asian male image in film and television, is somewhat more sanguine. "Slanted Screen" also makes the case that representation in media both reflects and impacts societal attitudes -- but Adachi believes that the worst excesses of Hollywood history are behind us, and a new breed of Asian American actors, producers and directors is crashing the show-biz gates in a way that's not only increasing the number of Asians in film and on TV but reframing the way we're being portrayed as well.

"Historically, it's true, Hollywood tended to take three steps forward and two steps back," he says. "But we're positioned now to make much larger gains than in the past. You look at this younger generation of Asian Americans, who didn't grow up immersed in civil rights, and the idea of being constrained by race is completely foreign to them. ["Mad TV" cast member] Bobby Lee, he told me he never auditions for an Asian role, because he knows he's not going to get it -- it's going to go to the really good-looking Asian guy. So he only auditions for 'white' roles -- and he gets them, because he's funny and talented and doesn't have any baggage. He went out for a commercial that was looking for a 'mountain man,' a guy living out by himself in the wilderness, and he said he was the only person of color to show up for the audition. Everyone else was a big, bearded Caucasian guy. And he got the role."

I'm Too Sexy (for This Column)

That brash, damn-the-torpedoes, what-do-I-have-to-lose sensibility isn't just a blueprint for storming the gates of Hollywood; it's also a critical ingredient in the recipe for masculine sex appeal, regardless of race, ethnicity and culture. A nation of emo boys notwithstanding, being comfortable with who you are, even defiantly so, can make the gnarliest of dudes a lovebeast of epic proportions. It's what makes mirror-shattering rock stars like Mick Jagger, Steve Tyler and Ric Ocasek such model magnets (well, that and a few million in the bank).

"I think if you compare the general demeanor and attitudes of young Asian American men now versus a generation ago -- when people like you and me were coming of age -- you'll find a lot more self-confidence," says Oliver Wang, cultural critic, assistant professor of sociology at California State University, Long Beach, and fellow blogger at the Asian American papa community Rice Daddies. "Not that we've reached the promised land of secure masculinity yet. Hell, what men have?"

Karin Chien, producer of "The Motel" and "Robot Stories," agrees. "Sexiness comes from within," she says. "It's confidence and power and success and humor all rolled up into one big package. Sexiness is knowing that you're hot, no matter what anyone else in the room -- or anyone at People magazine -- says."

Which brings me to my biggest reflection upon perusing this year's "SMA." Clooney isn't the sexiest man in the issue. But Yul Kwon, for all of his drop-forged perfection, isn't, either. From my humble perspective, 2006's Sexiest Man Alive is none other than Masi Oka, breakout star of the hit show "Heroes."

I've dropped a lot of love on "Heroes" recently, not only because I'm an addict of the program but because I think it captures the zeitgeist in a way that other series -- including the desperate denizens of Wisteria Lane and the Other-haunted castaways of "Lost" -- do not. We live in a time when we're searching for heroes. But in searching for them, we're also redefining them, casting them in new and more mundane images. We don't want flash, we want familiarity. We're seeking the extraordinary, but with an accent on the ordinary.

The heroic quest of Oka's character, Hiro Nakamura, isn't just saving the world; it's reframing the cultural dialogue on masculinity and sexual appeal, and reinventing the notion of heroism itself. Recent episodes have shown a new side to Hiro -- his romantic streak -- and my friends and I hope that the show's writers let him succeed in his chivalrous journey to save his perky soul mate, a Texas greasy-spoon waitress with superhuman mnemonic powers. (And yes, she's white, though interracial relationship issues seem refreshingly abstracted in "Heroes" -- there are at this count three significant trans-ethnic couples in the series, with nary a single reference yet to race, which, depending on your perspective, is either a sign of more tolerant times or proof positive that the show exists in a parallel universe.)

Hiro is a doughy, bespectacled and flamboyant out-of-the-cubicle geek -- a manga addict, a comic book fanboy, a hard-core Trekker. But he's so at one with his inner dork (which is also his outer dork) that it all ultimately proves irresistibly charming -- even, you know, sexy.

"I was talking to Tim Kring, the show's creator, and he told me that Hiro's character is completely the work of Masi," says People's Wang. "The way Hiro was written, the character wasn't nearly as funny and interesting as Masi's made him. The way Masi decided to play him has actually changed the direction of how the season's playing out. Did you know that all the Japanese dialogue in the show -- Masi does the translations himself. The script is written in English, and Masi converts the lines that are supposed to be in Japanese into phrases that are appropriate, slangwise. And that's kind of lost on people who don't speak the language. But it's part of what has made his character so authentic and appealing."

That's the ticket, right? It's always been out there -- it's the moral of every made-for-teens TV movie, the end zone of every sitcom's "Very Special Episode": Be at home in your own skin -- don't try to reformat yourself to the world's expectations, be yourself, love yourself, and just maybe, the world will follow.

Of course, we -- and the cast of "Heroes" -- have a long way to go before we can fix the world's problems. For one thing, the online poll at People's Web site, asking readers to vote on the show's sexiest male cast member, has Masi Oka stuck at 2 percent; floppy-haired Milo Ventimiglia is in the lead at 30 percent. I'm not saying that everyone who reads this should head over and crash the vote. But on the other hand, on behalf of Masi, me and hundreds of thousands of other happily (extra)ordinary dweebs, I leave you with this cryptic message:

Save the fanboy. Save the world.

Jeff Yang forecasts new Asian and Asian American consumer trends for the market-research company Iconoculture (www.iconoculture.com). He is the author of "Once Upon a Time in China: A Guide to the Cinemas of Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China" (Atria Books) and co-author of "I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action" (Ballantine) and "Eastern Standard Time" (Mariner/Houghton Mifflin). He lives in New York City. Go to www.ouatic.com/mojomail/mojo.pl to join Jeff Yang's biweekly mailing list offering updates on this column and alerts about other breaking Asian and Asian American pop-culture news.

Hong Kong mulls introducing cardboard 'eco' coffins to speed cremations

HONG KONG (AP) - They're presentable, environmentally friendly and burn faster. Cardboard "eco-coffins" may just be the solution to long queues at Hong Kong's busy crematoriums, officials say. Health officials want to introduce the green coffins - made of corrugated cardboard and said to speed up the cremation process from 2 1/2 hours to one - to alleviate traffic at crematoriums, the government said Tuesday.

"With less time required for each session, we can arrange more sessions per day to cut queuing time for cremation," Carrie Yau, Hong Kong's permanent secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, said in a statement.

"That in turn will help ease the demand on our public mortuary."

Cremating the dead is more common and affordable than burials in land-scarce Hong Kong. The government said it has six crematoriums which provide 34,400 cremation sessions a year - about 94 sessions every day. But families of the dead often have to wait more than 10 days until they are assigned a slot.

Although the cardboard coffins are more efficient and are said to produce less toxic gas during combustion, they aren't likely to be popular in Hong Kong, where skimping on the traditional Chinese rituals of sending the dead away is seen as a sign of disrespect.

Still, Hong Kongers should try to accept the advantages of the coffins, said to be gaining popularity in Japan and Europe, Yau said.

"The eco-coffin coincides with the Asian philosophy of integration between man and nature," Yau said. "Due respect is given to the deceased, regardless of a simple or magnificent coffin."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

'Perhaps Love' takes top honours at China's Golden Horse film awards

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) - "Perhaps Love," the musical story of a romantic triangle on a film set, took top honours Saturday at the 43rd Golden Horse Awards, the Chinese language equivalent of the Oscars. The film took four awards, including best director, Hong Kong's Peter Chan, and best actress, China's Zhou Xun.

It also won in the best cinematography and best original film song categories.

"Perhaps Love" had been nominated for 12 awards.

Coming in close on its heels was "After This Our Exile," a Hong Kong drama about a deadbeat father struggling to take care of his young son.

It snagged three awards, including best picture and best actor.

The best actor prize went to Hong Kong pop star Aaron Kwok, his second in a row in the category. Last year he won for playing a troubled police officer obsessed with his missing wife in "Divergence."

The best supporting actor award was won by nine-year-old Ian Gouw, a Dutch resident, who portrayed Kwok's son in "After This Our Exile."

The best supporting actress prize went to Nikki Shie for her role in "Reflections," a dark horse in the competition.

This year's Golden Horse field was weakened after the withdrawal of "The Go Master," whose lead actor Chang Chen was up for best acting honours.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Japanese planners reveal design of world's tallest tower for downtown Tokyo

TOKYO (AP) - Japanese planners this week revealed the design of a huge broadcast tower that is set to become the world's tallest structure upon completion in 2011, eclipsing even Canada's CN Tower. The tower will stand 613.5 metres tall, according to Tobu Railway Co., which has provided land for the project. Once finished, it will claim the title from the CN Tower in Toronto, 553-metre-tall communications structure and outlook point which is currently the world's tallest freestanding structure.

Dubbed the "New Tokyo Tower," the building will replace a 332-metre tower built in 1958.

The new tower, designed by award-winning Japanese architect Tadao Ando and sculptor Kiichi Sumikawa, will stand on a triangular foundation. But its slender body will turn into a cylinder as it stretches upward, its bluish-silver colour blending into the sky.

The tower is being built by Japan's six top broadcasters and is expected to greatly bolster television and radio transmissions in the capital.

Though it now competes with a plethora of skyscrapers, the old tower is one of Tokyo's most visible landmarks and is visited by 2.5 million tourists each year. The new tower will stand in the capital's Sumida ward, an area wedged between the Sumida and Arakawa rivers and known for its old-Tokyo ambiance.

Sumida ward beat out 15 other areas in Tokyo to host the tower, many of which were dropped after failing broadcast feasibility tests or coming up short in other ways, including the availability of mass transit.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Toronto School of Art

Winter registration for classes starting January 15, 2007 begins November 13, 2006.
Early registration discount ends December 22 .

Christmas Open House - December 14 - 16 2006
Opening Thursday December 14, 7 - 11 pm
Friday - 11 am - 5 pm, Saturday - 11 am - 5 pm.

See our full calendar on line
www.tsa-art.ca/main2.htm

Toronto School of Art
410 Adelaide St. West, 3rd Floor
Toronto, Ontario M5V 1S8
416.504.7910 or 1.888.628.7471
info_tsoa@on.aibn.com

The Art Gallery of Mississauga

ATTENTION GRADUATES OF THE ART AND ART HISTORY PROGRAM
OF THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO, MISSISSAUGA AND SHERIDAN COLLEGE.

Dear Alumnus,

Please submit to The Art Gallery of Mississauga and the Art and Art History Program recent examples of your work for consideration by jury for: AAHlumniex, an exhibition of recent work of graduates from the Art and Art History Program, to be held in the Art Gallery of Mississauga from February 15 to March 25, 2007.

The submission deadline is Friday, December 29, 2006. There is no entry fee. Send entries to the Art Gallery of Mississauga at the address below.

Please include the following with your entry: documentation for one (1) or two (2) of your recent works available for exhibition, in the format of slides, CD, or DVD, (no web sites), with the titles, sizes, media, year, retail value, installation guidelines, a 1 page C.V., and a Self-Addressed Return Envelope.

Work selected must be delivered to the Art Gallery of Mississauga by Monday, February 5, 2007.

The gallery is located at:
300 City Centre Drive
Mississauga, Ontario,
L5B 3C1, Canada
Attention: Robert Freeman, Curator

Work must be delivered in the format intended for exhibition in packaging suitable for safe handling, temporary storage, and return. Work may be picked up at the close of the exhibition after March 25, 2007.

A two-person jury comprised of Robert Freeman, Curator of the Art Gallery of Mississauga, and Seamus Kealy, curator of the Blackwood Gallery, will meet in by mid January 2007. The artists selected for exhibition will be notified by January 19, 2007.

Artists in the exhibition will receive the CAR/FAC group show fee, be highlighted in the publicity, and receive a special invitation to attend the opening with the community and students and faculty of the Art and Art History Program.

The opening of the exhibition is on February 15, 2007 and the exhibition continues to March 25, 2007.

On behalf of the Art Gallery of Mississauga and the Art and Art History Program we look forward to the participation of our alumni in this celebratory exhibition.

Robert Freeman, curator, Art Gallery of Mississauga
Seamus Kealy, curator, Blackwood Gallery
Louise Noguchi, co-coordinator, Art and Art History Program

300 CITY CENTRE DRIVE, MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO, CANADA L5B3C1
TELEPHONE (905) 896-5088 FAX (905) 615-4167
WEBSITE: WWW.ARTGALLERYOFMISSISSAUGA.COM

Furious Chinese acupuncturists declare war on Ont. over bill

TORONTO (CP) - Furious Chinese acupuncturists are threatening to mobilize half-a-million people against Ontario's Liberal government over legislation making their profession self-regulating. The bill, which passed unanimously on Thursday, entrenches "quackery" and puts the public at risk, critics said. "Bill 50 discriminates against the Chinese medicine profession and against the Chinese community and is a second head tax," said Stephen Liu, co-chairman of the Canadian Society of Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture.

"We will fight to the last."

The reference to the hated tax once imposed on Chinese immigrants indicates the depth of anger over the legislation among many of Ontario's 3,000 practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine.

Critics say they find it offensive that the law allows other groups of health professionals - such as physiotherapists, massage therapists or chiropractors - to continue using acupuncture under standards set by their own regulating bodies.

Liu said Chinese acupuncturists opposed to the legislation will call on their patients, their families, friends, relatives and members of their churches - 500,000 people in all - to fight the Liberal party in next year's provincial election.

Dr. Stanley Shyu, a Chinese-trained doctor of traditional medicine who has practised in Canada for 32 years, said it's ludicrous to allow others to perform acupuncture without rigorous training.

Doing so waters down a profession that can cure a wide range of ailments when done by properly trained experts, but harms patients when done improperly, he said.

"You don't let laymen stick needles in people and call it acupuncture," Shyu said.

"That's called needling."

Health Minister George Smitherman, who introduced the bill almost a year ago, acknowledged divisions over the legislation.

However, he said there was no reason to stop other medical professionals from performing acupuncture.

"Each of those colleges will be looking to work together in terms of making sure that there is a consensus that the standard is consistent and appropriate," Smitherman said.

Proponents say the college that will regulate the profession when it's up and running, likely in about two years, will set high standards, protect the public, and enhance the overall credibility of the profession.

Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia along with close to 50 American states already regulate Chinese medicine.

Critics also railed against the legislation because practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine would no longer be able to prescribe and dispense herbal formulas and compounds.

Naturopaths could get the exclusive right to do so, even though they might have less training.

"Where is the fairness in this?" said Marylou Lombardi, president of the Ontario Association of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Opposition Leader John Tory said he supported the legislation because it at least imposes a regulatory framework.

"We're hopeful that as the college is set up that some of the issues that have not been adequately addressed might be addressed at that time," Tory said.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Chinese envoy urges patience on rights

JEFF SALLOT
Globe and Mail

OTTAWA — China's ambassador said yesterday that Canadians should not point fingers at his country on human rights, in a speech that stoked new debate about Prime Minister Stephen Harper's hard-line China policy.

Ambassador Lu Shumin won applause from many at a business luncheon when he said Sino-Canadian relations should be marked by mutual respect rather than finger-pointing.

"Learning from each other with tolerance and respect will prove far more productive for common progress and prosperity than standing on the roof and pointing fingers at each other," Mr. Lu said.

Meanwhile, Falun Gong members and human-rights demonstrators assembled on Parliament Hill to thank Mr. Harper for his recent pronouncement that Canadian democratic values will not be sacrificed for the "almighty dollar" in relations with China.

At the same time, witnesses from PEN Canada, the free-speech advocacy organization, and Chinese expatriate groups told a House of Commons subcommittee that a 10-year-old official "dialogue" program with China on rights is a failure and should be suspended.

Mr. Lu told the Canadian Club of Ottawa that China will not build a harmonious society based on the rule of law and democracy overnight. "It takes effort over time."

Speaking later with reporters, Mr. Lu said China had made "tremendous improvement in human rights," citing the country's increased ability to feed its enormous population. Food is a basic human right, Chinese officials often say.

He didn't think the diplomatic contretemps that arose between Canada and China at a recent summit of Pacific Rim leaders in Hanoi would cause lasting harm to bilateral relations. "China-Canada relations will continue to grow."

But when pressed again on rights and democracy, Mr. Lu said these are things that are hard to achieve. "You have to do it to your own national conditions."

The attitude that somehow rights are different for the Chinese infuriates rights groups. David Cozac of PEN Canada told the Commons subcommittee that basic human rights are universal. China's constitution, he noted, contains guarantees of free speech that are disregarded by Chinese officialdom.

Representatives from PEN, the Toronto Association for Democracy in China and Falun Gong, the spiritual group that is banned in China, said previous Canadian governments miscalculated Ottawa's influence when they pursued a bilateral human-rights dialogue with China for 10 years rather than co-sponsoring UN resolutions calling on China to improve its record.

The Chinese have been sending progressively more junior officials to these annual sessions, and they have produced no concrete results, the groups said.

But several business people at the ambassador's luncheon speech thought Mr. Harper's hard-line approach to China might be too rigid.

Previous Canadian governments have been able to deal with China on human rights without making the Chinese government lose face, said Paul Stinson, the president of Capra International, a Canadian biotech company that does business in China.

But the Harper government, he said, has set the wrong tone in dealings with the Chinese, putting Canadian business at risk of losing opportunities.

Boeing lands 25 craft order from Korean Air

Reuters

Boeing Co. scored one of its biggest orders so far this year yesterday as Korean Air Lines Co. Ltd. said it will buy 25 passenger and freighter aircraft worth $5.5-billion (U.S.), sending its shares to a record. The order, which included options for eight additional planes, brings Boeing's total net orders to 847 so far this year, extending its lead over European rival Airbus SAS, which had only 508 orders for 2006 at the end of last month. The company is staging a dramatic comeback after being beaten by Airbus for the past five years. BA (NYSE) rose $1.98 (U.S.) to $91.10. 003490 (Seoul) fell 700 won (86 cents) to 35,450 won.

Japanese job-referral company renting out robot as temporary worker

TOKYO (AP) - It can greet people, show DVDs and hand out balloons. "Ubiko," a robot-on-wheels with a catlike face, is joining the crew of temporary workers that a Japanese job-referral company hopes will be used at stores, events and even weddings. Next month, the 113 centimetre-tall robot will be selling mobile phones at a store, said Akiko Sakurai, a spokeswoman at the company, Ubiquitous Exchange. Ubiko can be hired as a temporary worker for two hours for US$890.

"We see this as serious business. There are jobs that robots are better at," Sakurai said Wednesday. "People do develop an attachment with the robot, and it's lovable."

The US$255,000 Ubiko, which comes mounted with a camera and infared sensors, greets customers with a nasal electronic voice, shows DVDs with the projector in its head and hands out balloons and other goods with wireless remote-controllable metallic arms, she said.

Ubiko is short for "ubiquitous computing" and "ubiquitous company," but also sounds like a Japanese female name, which often end with "ko."

Tmsuk, the Japanese manufacturer that made the robot, sold three last month to a hospital, where they are working as full-time, rather than temporary, receptionists and guides, said company spokeswoman Rie Sudo.

One of the receptionist robots at the hospital has a touch-panel on its body, and visitors can use it to get directions for where they want to go, and has been programmed to greet visitors.

"Just give it electricity, and a robot can work for long hours, even doing repetitive work, and you don't have to worry about labour laws," Sudo said.

Japan's declining birth rate means that in coming years it could face a labour shortage, and some experts believe that robots could be part of the answer in resolving that problem.

Robots are very popular in Japan partly because of the popularity of "manga" comics and animation that portray the robot as a friend and aide to humans.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

U.S. report raps Chinese energy tactic

Asian giant's aggressive approach seen as challenge to Washington's interests
SHAWN MCCARTHY
GLOBAL ENERGY REPORTER

OTTAWA -- China is increasingly challenging U.S. interests around the world with its aggressive effort to lock up foreign energy resources for its rapidly growing economy, a report from a congressionally appointed commission says.

The report says that, in its quest for secure energy supplies, China is befriending anti-American dictatorships, undermining global energy markets and expanding its navy to secure vital shipping lanes through which its imports pass.

"China's apparent willingness to value its own energy needs above the needs of international security is indicative of a nation as yet unprepared or unwilling to shoulder the burden of a responsible stakeholder state," said the report, from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, submitted to Congress late last week.

In an interview from Washington yesterday, commissioner Patrick Mulloy said the bipartisan group did not perceive an immediate threat to the United States from China's overseas investment in energy supplies, but added it must make a greater effort to persuade its Asian rival to follow the norms of the global energy marketplace.

"The Chinese seem to be driven by a strategy of getting the source of energy under their direct control and not introducing it into the wider market," Mr. Mulloy said.

"If you have a limited energy supply and they're getting a larger and larger control over portions of it, then the rest of us, if you get into a tight market situation, are bidding for a smaller proportion, which then has an impact on price and other things."

More broadly, the report accuses the Chinese of following a statist approach to the global marketplace -- manipulating its currency, limiting foreign access to its markets, subsidizing strategic exports -- at the expense of U.S. firms and jobs.

Leading Democrats, whose party won control of both houses of Congress this month, have been far more critical of China's human rights record and trading practices than their Republican colleagues.

Sydney Weintraub, a fellow with the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies, said he expects the Democrat-controlled Congress to act much more aggressively to counter what is seen as China's unfair trading practices, including in the energy sector.

In a world oil market of roughly 85 million barrels a day, China is now the second-largest crude oil consumer and accounts for 38 per cent of demand growth in recent years, each year increasing its appetite by half a million barrels a day.

From the mid-1990s to 2005, Chinese companies invested an estimated $7-billion (U.S.) in oil projects abroad, while in the last year alone, they allocated $12-billion to direct foreign investment.

The commission said those investment were aimed at 13 companies, including a small one in a Canadian oil sands project. Angola, which has been a major recipient of Chinese investment, this year surpassed Saudi Arabia as its leading source of imports.

The report criticizes China's willingness to do deals with oppressive governments in Sudan, Myanmar and Zimbabwe, and thwart international efforts to improve human rights in those countries.

It also raised concerns about Chinese naval expansion, which it says is driven in part by the desire to protect the Strait of Malacca, which connects the Indian and Pacific oceans and through which 80 per cent of China's imported crude oil pass. The "blue water" navy is "becoming a force capable of challenging the U.S. military in the western Pacific and beyond," it warned.

Joseph Dukert, a veteran Washington-based energy consultant, said the Chinese investments in global crude oil supplies should not raise alarms because that investment is stimulating production that may otherwise not occur.

He noted Chinese firms are being courted to invest in a Canadian oil sands project that would stimulate construction of a pipeline to the West Coast. He added that it would also serve California markets.

Chinese yank Wikipedia

GILLIAN WONG
Associated Press

BEIJING — China's easing of a ban on the popular online encyclopedia Wikipedia appears to have been short-lived.

Users reported Friday that the site was unavailable in several parts of China, barely a week after it suddenly became accessible.

It wasn't immediately clear if user-contributed encyclopedia was unreachable due to technical glitches or because government censors had blocked the site again. The Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Information Industry did not immediately respond when contacted for comment Friday.

Beijing first blocked access to the English and Chinese versions of Wikipedia in October last year, apparently out of concern about entries touching on Tibet, Taiwan and other sensitive topics.

China's communist government has waged a battle to control the anarchic Internet and filter the information Chinese can get. Police employ an array of measures, from sophisticated filters and detection software that hunts for sensitive words to having officers monitor Web traffic.

As a result, surfing the Web in China is a very different experience from that in much of the world. Because almost anyone can add to and edit listings in Wikipedia, the site is famously freewheeling, addressing sensitive topics that pose a challenge to Beijing's control.

The site's English version was unblocked last month, while the Chinese version became available late last week, until Friday when users said both versions could not be accessed.

"China's Internet users are not different from other countries' users," said Yuan Mingli, 33, a software engineer in Shanghai who has contributed articles on computer science and Chinese historical figures to the site. "Wikipedia is a very important source of information for us."

Experts had earlier expressed skepticism over the government's unannounced lifting of the ban on the popular site, saying it could be only temporary.

"It's great to see Wikipedia unblocked, though in China an unblocking is probationary: it might be blocked again in a day, a week, or a month," Jonathan Zittrain, professor of Internet governance and regulation at Oxford University, said at the time.

Wikipedia contributors such as Yuan said they recalled at least two instances before the ban when censors teased Internet users by sporadically blocking access to the site for weeks at a time.

It was also not clear why Beijing had earlier allowed access to the site.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Thursday she had no information on the issue, but added China "actively supports and promotes the development of the Internet."

"We manage the Internet in accordance with our laws and regulations," Jiang said.

Minister unveils $3.1-billion plan for Alberta schools

(CBC) - Alberta's education minister unveiled an ambitious $3.1 billion, five-year plan for schools across the province Tuesday.

Gene Zwozdesky said the plan is the result of hundred of meetings with school boards across the province.

Zwozdesky is recommending that $1.4 billion be spent over five years on new or replacement schools, in addition to $900 million for preservation and modernization of existing schools.

The plan also includes $200 million over four years for state-of-the-art, steel framed, portable modular classrooms.

Zwozdesky said communities in the province are growing at a rapid rate due to Alberta's economic boom and the modular classrooms will provide a more immediate solution to the pressures on the school system.

The minister is also proposing that $520 million be put towards addressing obsolete or outdated facilities and $50 million to deal specifically with industrial arts programs.

Providing industrial arts classes with proper space and equipment will help get more students interested in skilled labour as a career and help address the labour crunch in the province, he said.

The proposed plan will now go to the provincial government, and the new premier, for consideration.

© the CBC, 2006

U.S. legislator warns of Bush plot to merge Canada, the U.S. and Mexico

WASHINGTON (CP) - A U.S. legislator who backs tough anti-immigrant measures and more security at the Canada-U.S. border is warning Americans that President George W. Bush is plotting to integrate the continent. And he says Prime Minister Stephen Harper "buys into it." Colorado Republican Tom Tancredo, revered by some U.S. conservatives for his efforts to staunch the flow of illegal immigrants from Mexico, said this week that Bush is a dangerous internationalist.

"He is going to do what he can to create a place where the idea of America is just that, it's an idea. It's not an actual place defined by borders. I mean this is where the guy is really going," he told WorldNetDaily, a controversial conservative website.

"I know this is dramatic, or maybe somebody would say overly dramatic. But I'm telling you that everything I see leads me to believe that this whole idea of the North American union, it's not something that's just written about by right-wing fringe kooks," said Tancredo, who is considering a run at the presidency.

"It is something in the head of the president of the United States, the president of Mexico, I think the prime minister of Canada buys into it . . ."

Tancredo followed up with an interview on the conservative Fox News network, where he said the borders will lose all their significance, serving merely as "speed bumps" in the flow of goods, services and people.

In October, Tancredo demanded the United States suspend work on the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) signed last year by Canada, Mexico and The United States until Congress examines its goals and agreements, which include standardizing regulations and dismantling other barriers to trade.

The deal to collaborate on a wide range of trade and security issues is part of a larger plot to merge the countries in a European Union-like arrangement using a common currency, he said, with no oversight from legislators.

The congressman, who wrote a book on the border security issue called "In Mortal Danger," is one of four members of Congress who've signed a resolution opposed to a union or a free trade "superhighway system."

They're not the only ones worried about closer ties between the three countries.

A coalition of American conservatives is organizing a grassroots effort to make it an issue in the 2008 presidential race and vow to campaign against any candidate, Republican or Democrat, who won't side with them.

The movement was spearheaded in October by Howard Phillips, chairman of the public policy group Conservative Caucus, anti-feminist activist Phyllis Schlafly and author Jerome Corsi.

The group is calling for a congressional investigation into the SPP and full disclosure of all documents when the new Congress run by Democrats begins in January. They're getting support from the Minuteman Project that monitors the borders to deter illegal crossings, a group Bush has called vigilantes.

Supporters of the anti-union stand point out that a prominent three-country task force backed by Canada's business elite has promoted an elaborate vision of a common economy and security perimeter.

The plan, released last year, drew fire from some Canadians who saw it as a dangerous surrender of sovereignty designed to benefit big business.

Tancredo, who has often talked about the "porous" Canada-U.S. border, stirred up controversy last year when he mused on a Florida radio show that America could destroy Islamic holy sites like Mecca if there's another terrorist attack on U.S. soil.

While beloved by many right-wingers and immigration hawks, Tancredo was recently labelled one of the 10 worst congressmen by Rolling Stone magazine.

The publication noted he wants to deport every undocumented worker in the United States, a proposal that would cost at least US$200 billion, and has called for halting all immigration, legal or otherwise.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Radio station owner suspects sabotage in robbery

ALEXANDRA GILL
Globe and Mail

VANCOUVER -- A new voice in British Columbia's South Asian radio universe is scrambling to meet its scheduled launch date this Saturday after a robbery last week.

Last Friday morning, thieves broke into the station's North Burnaby office at 3060 Norland Ave., and took off with its main server, back-up system and specialized production equipment that contained music collections, taped station identification spots and other valuable software that amounts to weeks of lost work.

Police say it was a routine break-in, but the station's owner is suspicious.

"Someone doesn't want us to launch," said Sushma Datt, the owner of I.T. Productions Ltd., which operates CJRJ AM 1200, one of two new ethnic radio stations licensed last year.

"They knew what they were looking for," said Ms. Datt, explaining that the thieves bypassed seven computers at work stations near the front of the office, and only removed equipment from the office's two production studios and on-air suite.

"These are not personal computers," she said. "This equipment would be useless to most people, even to other radio broadcasters. All our programs are designed in-house."

Constable Kalinda Link, media relations liaison for the Burnaby RCMP, said a witness saw a van leaving the premises. The vehicle, which turned out to be stolen, was later recovered.

Although the production equipment is still missing and the case remains under investigation, Constable Link says there is nothing in the report that points to a targeted break-in.

Others in the community suggest the timing is strange.

"Maybe someone's playing mischief," says Rattan Mall, editor of Indo-Canadian Voice, a weekly newspaper published in Surrey.

I.T. Productions is a privately owned company that also operates Radio Rim Jhim, a subcarrier broadcaster.

Radio Rim Jhim, has been on the air for 17 years and was once the market leader, but can be received only by specialized radio sets tuned to its frequency, a subsignal of local country station CJJR-FM, or on cable and satellite.

In 2004, Ms. Datt applied to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission for a new licence to expand her audience.

The CRTC put two licences up for bid, after assessing that the Lower Mainland's South Asian community -- now 250,000 people strong -- was being underserved. Eight applicants competed for the two licences, one AM, one FM.

I.T. Productions won the AM bid. The new station will be broadcast in 17 languages for 11 ethnic communities, although most of the Monday-to-Saturday programming will be heard in Punjabi, Urdu, Hindustani and English.Ms. Datt is no stranger to controversy. She's received death threats and her car tires were slashed on numerous occasions, after speaking out on talk-show programs about violence against women, infanticide and religious differences.

She noted, however, that she hasn't said anything recently that would upset people or provoke the theft at her new station.

Air travellers to U.S. will have to show passports starting Jan. 23

WASHINGTON (CP) - Air travellers to the United States will officially need passports starting Jan. 23. The security measure was supposed to go into effect early in January. But U.S. officials missed a deadline to publish final details of the plan 60 days before it goes into effect.

Those will be published tomorrow, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told the Associated Press.

Visitors from most countries in the hemisphere are already required to show passports. But people from Canada, Bermuda and Mexico, and Americans re-entering the country have been able to use other forms of identification.

Chertoff said 90 per cent of passengers leaving from Canadian airports in September 2006 had passports.

New rules for passports at Canada-U.S. land and sea border crossings were originally supposed to kick in Jan. 1, 2008. But that deadline has been pushed back until mid-2009 after widespread complaints and difficulties creating an alternative U.S. identity card.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Cheung: 'Battle' was a labour of love

HONG KONG (AP) - Director Jacob Cheung says his new movie "A Battle of Wits" was a labour of love that took more than a decade to bring to reality and isn't just another attempt to cash in on the demand for epic films set in ancient China.

Promoting the film at a Hong Kong news conference, Cheung said he spent nearly 11 years working on it. "I'm not making films based on what the market needs," he said. "I think the script . . . can convey the message of appreciating peace and considering the means by which we obtain our goals."

"A Battle of Wits," based on a Japanese comic book, is the story of a follower of ancient Chinese philosopher Mozi who tries to stay true to his anti-war teachings, even as his followers stray from his beliefs. It is scheduled to open Thursday in Hong Kong, mainland China and Southeast Asia.

The movie, funded by investors from China, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, stars Andy Lau, Ahn Sung-ki and Choi Si-won from South Korea, China's Fan Bingbing and Taiwan's Nicky Wu.

Chinese cinema has seen a slew of big productions set in ancient China in recent years, such as Zhang Yimou's "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers" and Tsui Hark's "Seven Swords."

Zhang also is due to release "Curse of the Golden Flower," a story revolving around ancient Chinese politics starring Chow Yun-fat and Gong Li, next month.


Cheung said he focused on developing the script of "A Battle of Wits" and made sure the movie wasn't so flashy that its message would be obscured.

"I don't think there's much point to playing hide-and-seek with the camera," he said.

Cheung said he wants the movie to promote the message that "there are no heroes in war," and that "anyone who tries to solve problems through war can only fail."

The director said he found the film's epic scale challenging.

"The film involves an army of 100,000 attacking a city with a population of 4,000 people. There were many battle scenes, which I haven't done before."

He said he received some help from action director Dong Wei.

Jack Layton to Mark Redress with Head Tax Families

NDP Leader to Observe Seminal Redress Turnaround Moment

Vancouver BC - The Head Tax Families Society of Canada (HTFSC) is
encouraged Jack Layton, Leader of the federal New Democrats, will
observe the turnaround of the Chinese head tax/exclusion redress
struggle at a public forum. Invitees include the Leaders and Greater
Vancouver Members of Parliament of the four parties represented in the
House of Commons, the Leaders of parties and Members of the B. C.'s
legislature and elected officials from the three parties represented
at Vancouver city council.

When: 11:00am Saturday, November 25, 2006
Where: Chinese Cultural Center - Dr. David Lam Hall, 50 East Pender St, Vancouver

On November 26 last year, the ad hoc B. C. Coalition of Head Tax
Payers, Spouses and Descendants (BC Coalition) organised a march in
Chinatown to protest the federal government's "no apology, no
compensation" agreement. An information line was set up outside a
closed redress conference funded by the government at the Chinese
Cultural Center and a photo opportunity for Prime Minister Paul Martin
at United Chinese Community Enrichment Social Services (SUCCESS). This
action is considered a seminal moment in the redress struggle.

Several days later, the action manifested itself politically. Kanman
Wong and Darrell Reid, who were at the information line and subsequent
Conservative candidates in the 2006 federal election, joined
Conservative John Cummins MP (Delta-Richmond East) to break with the
party position. On December 8, 2005, with the federal election
underway, Conservative leader Stephen Harper promised action on
Chinese head tax/exclusion redress if elected.

The unilateral settlement imposed by the Government will directly
address only 0.6% of affected head tax families. Approximately 600
surviving head tax payers and spouses will receive $20,000 in ex
gratia payments. Over 82,000 Chinese families paid the unjust tax
between 1885 and 1923 in Canada and 1906 to 1949 in Newfoundland
before joining Confederation.

Subsequently, members of the BC Coalition formed the Head Tax Families
Society of Canada, a B. C. registered Society with a mandate from over
2,500 written claims for justice and honour for Chinese pioneer
families. An open membership and democratic Society, HTFSC continues
its mission of meaningful redress for head tax families.

Deepa Mehta to direct CBC Radio play

By LEE-ANNE GOODMAN

TORONTO (CP) - Deepa Mehta is having a good year: her labour of love, "Water," has been selected as Canada's submission for a best foreign-language film Oscar and she's now trying her hand at something completely different - directing a live-to-broadcast stage show.

Mehta, 54, one of Canada's most acclaimed filmmakers, will be at a downtown Toronto theatre on Tuesday for dress rehearsals for "Funny Boy," a dramatic play based on an excerpt from Shyam Selvadurai's bestselling debut novel of the same name.

"It's lovely - it's charming, it's warm, but it deals with a subject that is intense but from a point of view that is innocent," Mehta said Monday of the novel that tells the story of an eight-year-old boy coming of age in the midst of the Sri Lankan civil war.

"I've always been a fan of the book and when CBC asked me if I'd be interested in doing anything for radio, this is the one that I clamped onto and it's been such fun to do."

The production will air live on CBC Radio One on Sunday at 2 p.m. EST from The Young Centre for Performing Arts in Toronto's so-called Distillery District. The cast will also perform the show three times - on Thursday, Friday and Saturday - before the live-to-broadcast performance on Sunday.

For the Indian-born Mehta, it's been a pleasant diversion from her usual business of writing screenplays and making films.

She's just finished the first draft of a script for her next film, "Exclusion," about a 1914 incident in which Canada refused to let the Indian passengers of a steamship land in B.C. And she's still delighted about the Oscar buzz surrounding "Water," a film set in India in the 1930s that delves into the country's appalling treatment of widows. The movie, the third in a trilogy after "Fire" and "Earth," has been described as "magnificent" by author Salman Rushdie.

Some of Mehta's satisfaction comes, of course, from the fact that "Water" was such a difficult film to get made.

During the initial shoot in the Indian city of Varanasi in 2000, Mehta and her crew were terrorized by religious fundamentalists who claimed they'd seen her script and deemed it anti-Hindu. The set was destroyed and Mehta herself received death threats and was burned in effigy.

Production shut down and it wasn't until 2004 that it started anew, this time in Sri Lanka - giving Mehta four years to contain her anger.

"I said to myself that I would not even try to make 'Water' again unless I stopped being angry about what happened," she said in an interview from her Toronto home. "You can't impose your own personal anger on a script or it becomes something else. It wasn't meant to be an angry film. It would have done an absolute disservice to what I wanted to do, to impose that kind of anger on something that didn't deserve it or didn't need it."

That's why the Oscar talk, she says, is a "real honour."

"As filmmakers, you should try to have few expectations because you don't know how things are going to work out, but you hope for the best, so this is great."

She adds that she's also delighted to see a Hindi-language film considered Canadian.

"When it was chosen to open the Toronto International Film Festival last year, it was really good, because it said to me that yes, even though a script is in Hindi, that is Canada," she says. "So now being nominated by Canada - again, a Hindi-language film - is really putting your money where your mouth is. This is Canada, and it's fantastic."

But until the Oscar nominees are announced in January, Mehta is focusing her energies on her new film and, this week, on "Funny Boy."

CBC Radio says it's the first time in 10 years it has "embraced the classic style of Orson Welles' theatrical radio dramas of the 1930s" - something Mehta describes as a shame.

"I wish they would do more, and maybe this will help convince them," she said. "It's so Canadian; it's such a Canadian thing to do."

Copyright © 2006, Canoe Inc

Wii console sold out in Canada: Nintendo

(CBC) - Canadian retailers sold out of Nintendo's new Wii video game console on launch day, although a few units may be found in places that don't have Sunday shopping, the company says.

"It's another vindication of Nintendo's strategy," Farjad Iravani, a marketing manager with Nintendo of Canada, told CBC News Online from his Vancouver office on Monday.

"There might be some scattered stores that have a couple of units here and there, but in terms of the national picture, we have sold through the Canadian allocation," Iravani said.

He said more shipments are expected every week, starting this week, so the company can meet its worldwide goal of selling four million units by the end of the holiday season.

The $279.95 Wii makes use of current - instead of cutting edge - graphics technology for its graphics, diverging from competitors Sony and Microsoft, whose consoles focus heavily on providing gamers with high-definition graphics capabilities.

Instead, the Wii's gameplay centres on its unique motion-sensitive controller, which resembles a television remote control connected by a cable to a module similar to a computer mouse. People swing the remote like a baseball bat or sword to see their physical actions duplicated in the game, and similarly, they can use the mouse or "nunchuk" to steer their character around onscreen.

Holiday sales expected to hit four-million-unit mark

Meanwhile, the high-fidelity graphics of Nintendo's rivals come at a price - $549.99 or $659.99 for Sony's PlayStation 3 models with differing capabilities, which sold out on launch day Nov. 17; and $399.99 or $499.99 for Microsoft's Xbox 360 models.

The Wii comes with Wii Sports, a collection of five sports games, and is backward compatible with a library of some 530 games for the previous Nintendo GameCube console. Owners can also connect to the online Wii Shop Channel, which lets them download classic games such as Donkey Kong, Super Mario 64, and Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog.

Nintendo expects to sell four million units worldwide through the holiday season, and had previously said it expected to ship one million Wiis to North America for launch - more than double the 400,000 units Sony had said it would ship for its North American launch.

© the CBC, 2006

Honda Civics top list of most frequently stolen vehicles for second year

TORONTO (CP) - The 1999 and 2000 Honda Civics SiR 2-door hold the distinction of topping the most frequently stolen vehicles list in Canada for a second year in a row. The Insurance Bureau of Canada list also suggests the two models had the third and fourth highest theft claims cost per vehicle.

The highest theft claim cost per vehicle was the third most frequently stolen vehicle - the 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX/WRX STi four-door all-wheel-drive.

Number four on the most stolen list was the 1999 Acura Integra two-door, followed by the 1994 Honda Civic Si two-door Hatchback.

The bureau says in 2005, 160,000 vehicles were stolen in Canada.

The list of least stolen vehicles includes the 2000 Saab 9-5 four-door, 2002 Volvo S60 four-door all-wheel-drive, 2002 Pontiac Bonneville four-door and the 1998 Lincoln Continental.

Most stolen and least stolen vehicles in Canada, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada.

Top 10 Stolen Vehicles:
1. 2000 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
2. 1999 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
3. 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX/WRX STi 4-door AWD
4. 1999 Acura Integra 2-door
5. 1994 Honda Civic Si 2-door Hatchback
6. 1998 Acura Integra 2-door
7. 1993 Dodge Shadow Convertible
8. 1996 Honda Civic Si 2-door Hatchback
9. 2000 Audi TT Quattro 2-door Coupe
10. 1996 Chev/GMC Blazer/Jimmy S Series 2-door 4WD

Top 10 Least Stolen Vehicles:
1. (tie) 2000 Saab 9-5 4-door
1. (tie) 2002 Volvo S60 4-door AWD
1. (tie) 2002 Pontiac Bonneville 4-door
1. (tie) 1998 Lincoln Continental 4-door
1. (tie) 2001 Ford/Mercury Taurus/Sable Wagon
1. (tie) 2001 Pontiac Bonneville 4-door
1. (tie) 2002 Oldsmobile Silhouette
1. (tie) 1997 Saturn SW1 Wagon
9. 1998 Toyota Avalon XLS 4-door
10. (tie) 2000 Lincoln Continental 4-door
10. (tie) 2005 Saturn Ion 4-door Sedan
10. (tie) 1996 Buick Le Sabre 4-door

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Tourism boom brings hope and worry to Siem Reap, Cambodia's tourist hub

SIEM REAP, Cambodia (AP) - Nineteen-year-old Ra Pheap is a garbage sweeper at Cambodia's world-famous Angkor Wat archaeological site, and is keenly grateful for the influx of tourists to the centuries-old monuments. It's because of them she has her US$50-a-month job.

Suos Samnang, a 17-year-old souvenir vendor, also knows that her livelihood is closely linked to the busloads of camera-toting foreign visitors that arrive everyday.

But as they witness the frenzied construction of hotels and guest houses to tap the flow of visitors' dollars in this once-quiet town, even these two poor country girls realize that the blessings of tourism are mixed ones.

"I am worried that this will cause more pollution and migration to the town. The number of people living here just keeps growing. The streets are getting more crowded now," Suos Samnang said.

And some experts are even more concerned than that. They fear the unregulated development - specifically, unrestricted local pumping of underground water to meet rapidly rising demand - may literally undermine Angkor's foundations, destabilizing the earth beneath the famous centuries-old temples so much that they might sink and collapse.

Tourism is a key moneymaker for cash-strapped Cambodia, about one-third of whose 14 million people earn less than 56 cents a day.

Last year, about half of the 1.4 million visitors who came to Cambodia went to see the Angkor monuments, architectural masterpieces built at the height of the Khmer empire from the 9th to the 15th centuries. Total tourist arrivals for Cambodia in 2005 were an impressive 34.7 per cent above 2004's figures.

The steady boom has already transformed Siem Reap into a bustling town filled with luxury hotels and vehicles. Its streets are adorned with billboards promoting the latest mobile phones, pizza and burger joints and shopping malls. Several notable old buildings have been razed to make way for visitors' lodgings and honky-tonk strips have sprung up catering to low-budget travellers.

"The identity Siem Reap had for centuries is gradually disappearing, or maybe almost disappeared," said Teruo Jinnai, director in Cambodia of the UN cultural organization UNESCO and a 10-year resident of the country. "You have restaurants, massage parlours, hotels, and it's very sad to see that."

Culture shock aside, the health and quality of life of many of its 120,000 residents is imperilled by the boom, as is plain to see when traffic snarls the roads and streets get flooded by rain because of clogged sewers.

"This tremendous growth added to population increase has been exacerbating pressure on infrastructure," said a World Bank report on Cambodia's tourism sector last year. "Energy, water, sewage and waste are all significant problems."

It noted that hotels are not legally required to have sewage treatment facilities, though larger ones do have their own plants.

"But most guesthouses reportedly dump used water directly into the river, causing noticeable river pollution," it said, adding that E. coli, the bacteria found in human feces, has reportedly begun seeping into local wells.

At least as threatening over the long run is the uptake of water, with unrestricted pumping from the water table underlying the area.

"Water is being drawn from 70-80 metres underground by hotels and treated for use," warned the World Bank, noting that no one was quite certain how this affects the aquifers, or underground layers of rocks and sand, from which it is pumped.

Already though, "one of Angkor's temples is reportedly falling into a sinkhole, suggesting that the underground aquifers may be rapidly disappearing," said the report.

Japanese Ambassador Fumiaki Takahashi, whose country has drawn up a development master plan for Siem Reap to deal with the tourism boom, said most of its hotels are pumping underground water for their own use, "and there is no control."

It is the Cambodian government's "urgent task" to control the practice, he said, because "if you take too much water, it might affect the Angkor site. In the long run, the underground water will go down and the site would sink."

The plan of the Japan International Cooperation Agency calls for tapping underground water from near Phnom Kraom, a hill near the edge of the Tonle Sap lake about 12 kilometres south of the town, to avoid depletion of Siem Reap's underground water and reduce the risk of endangering the fragile temples, he said.

Deputy Tourism Minister Thong Khon said the government is ready to accept the master plan to address existing problems and accommodate future growth.

He sees a bright future for Siem Reap, in which the province won't just be a destination for touring the temples but will also become a hub providing air links for tourists to enjoy the sandy beaches of southwestern Cambodia and ecotourism in the jungles of the northeast.

He envisions that by promoting a diversity of destinations, the crowds will be distributed around the country, and the Angkor temples won't get "too jammed up."

Meanwhile, though, the tourist hordes continue to tramp through fabled Angkor Wat and its satellite temples of Angkor Thom, Bayon, Ta Prohm and Bakheng. Even at the lesser-known 10th-century Bakheng temple, an average of 3,000 tourists climb the 68 metres just in the two hours before dusk each day to view the spectacular sunset.

Ra Pheap, the 19-year-old sweeper, said she knows the onslaught could damage the delicate monuments.

She is employed by a Cambodian company that sells entry tickets to the temple site, and the visitors there are essentially paying her salary. With her earnings, she has reduced her family's reliance on rice farming and been able to help pay for Japanese-language classes for her younger brother and sister.

"I want them to become tour guides because I am confident more tourists will visit here," she said.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Aishwarya Rai questioned by customs officials on cash stashed in mail

MUMBAI, India (AP) - Customs officials on Monday questioned Indian superstar Aishwarya Rai about a shipment addressed to her that was found to contain a large sum of euros. Last week the customs department had seized a packet sent to Rai by a Netherlands-based Indian event organizer. The packet contained euros worth about US$28,800 tucked inside electronic goods. Rai said she knew nothing about the packet or the person who sent it.

"She was questioned for an hour or so at the airport," said her lawyer, Girish Kulkarni. "She said what we have always been saying: that she doesn't know this person and she is in no way concerned or connected with this."

Kulkarni said customs officials would continue investigations about the person who sent the package.

Rai was questioned at Mumbai's airport on her arrival from the desert town of Jaipur, where she had been filming for her new movie "Jodha Akbar."

The cash was found during a routine check of foreign mail by Mumbai's postal department.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo battle each other for game console supremacy

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - The gaming console war is officially under way after Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Co.'s Wii sold out at launches over the weekend.
Long-awaited debuts marked by buying frenzies and marred by violence over extremely limited supplies of the PS3 mean the intense sales challenge for the competitors and retailers will play out beyond the holidays.

"We're just pushing off the starting line here," Colin Sebastian, an analyst with Lazard Capital Markets, said Monday. "We continue to anticipate that both the PS3 and Wii will sell out at retail through the holiday period, but the real battle for next-generation console leadership will be fought in 2007."

Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360, which had a one-year lead over the PS3 and Wii, isn't facing the same supply constraints and is being heavily marketed to gift buyers who won't be able to find a PS3 or Wii.

Amazon.com is conducting a poll this week to see which bargain customers most want the online retailer to offer on U.S. Thanksgiving Day: 1,000 units of the Xbox 360, which normally sells for US$300, at $100 apiece; 2,500 mountain bikes at $30 each; 2,000 Barbie dolls at $10 each; or 2,000 Amazon membership packages at $10 apiece. Amazon said it would make good on the most popular deal.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is promoting an Xbox 360 holiday package for US$479 that includes a 20-gigabyte model, a video game, two extra controllers, and a three-month membership to the Xbox Live gaming service.

Retailers expect consumer excitement over the new consoles to also drum up sales of games and other equipment. Accessories such as memory cards, extra controllers and gaming chairs are all for sale.

"Retailers will use whatever console allocations they get to try to drive traffic to their stores," Sebastian said.

Supplies of the Wii and PS3 are not expected to meet demand until next year.

"The hard part is that we'd love to have every consumer have a PS3 or Wii under their Christmas tree. Unfortunately, that's not going to happen," said Jill Hamburger, Best Buy's vice-president of gaming.

Best Buy and other major retailers expect regular shipments of the consoles in coming weeks but only in limited quantities.

Sony said it will have about one million PS3 systems for North American stores by the end of the year while Nintendo said it will have shipped four million units.

The shortage has led to astronomical bidding online.

EBay Inc. said more than 13,000 PS3 consoles - which retails for US$500 to $600 - had been sold on its online auction site by midday Monday at an average price of $1,400. More than 9,500 Wiis had been sold at an average price of $467, almost twice its retail price.

Despite the supply problems, retailers are optimistic about the holiday season.

Today, there are more hardware options for video gaming than ever - from next-generation consoles and its predecessors to gaming handhelds such as Sony's PlayStation Portable and Nintendo's DS.

"The big thing is that it's a great year for gaming no matter what your gaming interests are," Hamburger said.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

China pledges that it won't execute Chinese-Canadian detainee: MacKay

OTTAWA (CP) - Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay suggested Monday that Canada had won a commitment from China not to execute a Chinese-Canadian - an assertion his spokesman later discounted. Canada received assurances that China won't execute Huseyin Celil, who's being held on suspicion of terrorism, said MacKay.

"We've already received a guarantee that (China) would not pursue the death penalty," the minister said outside the House of Commons.

Mackay added that the guarantee was evidence Canada was making headway with the Chinese government.

"So already we've made incremental progress in protecting this individual. And we're going to continue to take steps to try to gain consular access for him."

However, a spokesman for MacKay later said Canada never received a direct assurance from China, but that the minister meant Beijing would live up to a commitment it made to Uzbekistan when it asked that Celil be sent to China.

"Canada considered China's assurance in September to the Uzbecks to be an international obligation and expects it to keep its obligations," said Dan Dugas.

"China assured Uzbekistan when it asked for him to be turned over that it would not execute him. (The minister) considers that an international obligation which China will be held to."

Celil was arrested in March while visiting relatives with his family in Uzbekistan and was later detained in China without access to his family or Canadian officials.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper pointedly spoke about Celil with Chinese President Hu Jintao while in Vietnam, where the two leaders were among 21 gathered for the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit.

The lawyer for Celil's family says he has yet to speak in person with the imprisoned man, and news about the case has been difficult to get.

"So much of what we know is rumour and innuendo because China hasn't complied with its Vienna Convention obligations on consular affairs," Chris MacLeod said in an interview.

"All of this is murky and unclear. I want to know what he's been charged with and when the trial was and when he was convicted, on what evidence?"

China does not recognize Celil's Canadian citizenship.

While MacLeod had already been given to understand Celil faces a 15-year sentence in China, not the death penalty, the lawyer said he was interested to hear MacKay's comment about a guarantee.

"I think we take our small victories where we find them," said MacLeod.

"If China's saying they guarantee they won't execute him, I'd like a lot more than that, obviously. It's great he's alive but I'd like a guarantee he won't face cruel and unusual punishment while he's alive."

NDP Leader Jack Layton also questioned whether Celil was already facing a fate similar to that of Maher Arar, the Syrian-Canadian who was tortured in Syria after being deported by U.S. authorities.

"I think what all Canadians would like to see is the release of (Celil)," Layton said.

"Learning that he's not going to be put to death when we don't even know what the charges have been is, I suppose, comforting.

"But is he meeting the same fate as Maher Arar right now?"

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Approaching Dance Through Martial Arts with Lee Su-Feh of battery opera

As one of our Artists-in-Residence this season, the award-winning company battery opera is offering a series of unique classes focusing on approaching dance through martial arts: you don't have to have dance or martial arts experience, but a reasonable level of fitness is required. Here's how a previous participant describes Su-Feh's classes: 'Su-Feh's classes kick my ass into high gear, challenge and inspire me, give me a total workout, make me want to be able to run up walls, get me charged up and ready for action, make my thighs wobbly, and keep me coming back for more.' Classes run Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10am-12 noon, through to Dec 21 at Scotiabank Dance Centre. Drop-ins just $10.

For more performances, classes and workshops plus links to hundreds of dance organizations worldwide, visit www.thedancecentre.ca. Questions? Comments? Contact us at 604 606 6400 or info@thedancecentre.ca

"All Mixed Up" Hapa Chapbook Release Events

The editors of "All Mixed Up," a chapbook dedicated to the writing, art, photography, and social commentary by and about Hapas (mixed race Asians), announce events in Vancouver to celebrate the publication.

Vancouver contributors include:
Margaret Gallagher
Kelty McKinnon
Mark Nakada
Debora O
Haruko Okano and Fred Wah
Michael Tora Speier

Authors will read, perform, and sign chapbooks at the events. Editors Brandy Liên Worrall and James Lawrence Ardeña will answer questions about the "Mixed Up" chapbook series.

-- Sunday, December 3, 2006, 5-7 pm, Rhizome Cafe, 317 East Broadway.
-- Thursday, January 18, 2007, 6-8 pm, Centre A, 2 West Hastings Street.

-- If you are Hapa and would like to perform or read at one or more of these events, please email brandylien.worrall@gmail.com.
-- Bookstore and Cafe owners, if you would like to hold a reading/signing at your business, please email brandylien.worrall@gmail.com.

"All Mixed Up" will be on sale for $12/copy. "All Mixed Up" is a limited-run chapbook collection, and each copy is handcrafted. Proceeds from the sales of this chapbook go toward the publication of the complete works of the "Mixed Up" series (three chapbooks total), entitled, "Completely Mixed Up," forthcoming in 2007.

For more information, email brandylien.worrall@gmail.com.

Thanks to the following sponsors for their support:
Rhizome Cafe http://www.rhizomecafe.ca/
Centre A http://www.centrea.org
Powell Street Festival http://powellstfestival.shinnova.com/
UBC Initiative for Student Teaching & Research in Chinese Canadian Studies

About the Chapbook
"All Mixed Up"--Third and Final Volume of Mixed Up Hapa Chapbook Series Released

Mixt Up Productions is proud to announce the release of the third and final chapbook in the "Mixed Up" hapa chapbook series, begun in 1999. The final chapbook has been six years in the making, and is a compelling addition to the series devoted to the creative works and social commentaries by and about mixed race Asian North American writers, artists, and scholars. Each limited-edition copy is
hand-sewn, embellished, and numbered. All copies of the previous two chapbooks were sold out, and the editors of this third one expect a quick sell-out as well.

Nineteen writers, artists, and scholars are included in this volume:
Sumi Braun, California
Margaret Gallagher, Vancouver, British Columbia
Jeneen Garcia, the Philippines
Sherlyn Jimenez, Connecticut
Christian Langworthy, New York
Trina Mendiola, California
Kelty Miyoshi McKinnon, Vancouver, British Columbia
Rashaan Alexis Meneses, California
Dorian Merina, New York
Shyamala Moorty, California
Mark Nakada, Vancouver, British Columbia
Debora O, Vancouver, British Columbia
Stevii Paden, Pennsylvania
Haruko Okano and Fred Wah, Vancouver, British Columbia
Michael Tora Speier, Vancouver, British Columbia
Claire Tran, California
Brandy Lien Worrall, Vancouver, British Columbia
James Lawrence Ardena, Washington

To order a copy of "All Mixed Up," or for inquiries, email brandylien.worrall@gmail.com. The price of the chapbook is $12 plus shipping and handling. Proceeds from the sales of this chapbook go toward the publication of the complete works of the "Mixed Up" series, entitled, "Completely Mixed Up," forthcoming in 2007.

NSI National Exposure Amateur Movie Contest 2007 call for entries

Set your sights on becoming the next Guy Maddin, Sarah Polley or Paul Haggis

For budding filmmakers who dream of breaking into the world of film, Canada 's coolest non-professional movie contest run by the National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI) is the perfect place to start. The NSI National Exposure Amateur Movie Contest 2007 challenges non-professional filmmakers to write, direct and even act in their own five-minute masterpiece which could premiere at the NSI FilmExchange Canadian Film Festival and earn filmmakers over $1,000 in prize money.

All genres are eligible - drama, comedy, animation, romance, slapstick, science fiction, western or even horror - the sky's the limit. Contest organisers are looking for a complete story in five minutes or less. There is no age restriction or entry fee. Filmmakers are invited to get together with friends, neighbours or co-workers and create their short film.

Entry deadline: Monday, January 22, 2007 at 4:30 pm Central Time. Entries will be accepted on DVD only.

Rules* and entry form available at: www.nsi-canada.ca

An industry jury will choose the 12 best films and decide which budding filmmakers deserve one or more of the seven prestigious award titles** such as Best Screenplay, Best Director and Best Actor - each worth $100. There is a special $500 jury award for Best Overall Film and a grand prize of $1,000 for the winner of the NSI FilmExchange Audience Choice Award, voted for by the general public.

The 12 finalists' films will be available to watch online and film fans are invited to vote for their favourite to help determine the winner of the NSI FilmExchange Audience Choice Award. Online voting will open one week prior to the screening at NSI FilmExchange (Friday, February 24, 2007). Details will be posted at www.nsi-canada.ca in February 2007. The winner of the $1,000 NSI FilmExchange Audience Choice Award will be calculated by combining the online votes and live audience votes cast during the screening event at NSI FilmExchange on Mar. 3, 2007 where all 12 films will receive their world premiere.

The National Screen Institute – Canada, with headquarters in Winnipeg, is Canada’s oldest nationally-recognized film and television training school. NSI helps emerging writers, directors and producers bring their stories to life to share at home and abroad. Its market-driven programs have led to employment for NSI graduates by giving them a competitive edge — according to the latest NSI Alumni Survey, 97% of respondents are working in the industry. 2006 marks NSI's 20th anniversary year.

*The contest is open to all residents of Canada except residents of Québec, employees (and those persons with whom they are domiciled) of National Screen Institute - Canada, Doowah Design and of the corporations, the contest jury, contest sponsors and the advertising and promotional agencies involved in the contest.

**The $100 jury awards are:

1) Best Actor
2) Best Director
3) Best Film from Eastern Canada
4) Best Film from Manitoba
5) Best Film from Western Canada
6) Best Film Under 18
7) Best Screenplay

Western Canada includes British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut, and Eastern Canada includes Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.

The National Screen Institute – Canada operates with ongoing funding from Telefilm Canada through Canadian Heritage, and Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Tourism. Additional support provided by Patrons: CTV, CBC Television and The Brian Linehan Charitable Foundation and financial assistance provided by the Winnipeg Arts Council.

Singkil – A World Premiere!

Written By Catherine Hernandez
Directed By Nina Lee Aquino

fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre Company in association with Factory Theatre proudly presents Catherine Hernandez’s Singkil. The production, directed by Nina Lee Aquino, features actors Nadine Villasin, Karen Ancheta, Leon Aureus, Rose Cortez and David Yee. The show previews from Jan 6 2007, opens Thursday, Jan. 11 and runs until Jan. 28 2006.

To the Filipino community, the ancient tale of the Singkil is a familiar one: A Muslim Filipina princess who was caught in the throes of a violent earthquake cleverly escaped the debris unharmed and unaffected. Over hundreds of years, the story has been transformed into a theatrical spectacle where a dazzling princess dances her way in and out of clapping bamboo to a hypnotic beat.

Turning this legend on its ear is playwright Catherine Hernandez, who presents the ‘anti-princess’ Mimi: a down and out lost soul caught in the relentless grip of the past and forced into the unfamiliar terrain of forgiveness.

It’s present-day Scarborough. The grave of Maria Perez is still fresh and so are the wounds she left on her daughter Mimi and husband, Nestor. The family’s darkest secret is set to be buried along with its keeper when Maria’s best friend Norma arrives with a few secrets of her own. Now Mimi must stumble her way back to the land of the living by facing the mysteries held by the dead.

Catherine Hernandez is a Toronto-based writer and theatre practitioner. Based on her work with her mother, Cecille Hernandez, who is a pioneer of Filipino folk dance education in Canada, Singkil was first featured at the 2005 CrossCurrents Festival and is part of Hernandez’s "Scarborough Stories" anthology. Its second installment, Saint Candice, is a short story that will be featured in this year’s Diaspora Dialogues Festival. The third installment, Kilt Pins, a play about teens in a Scarborough Catholic high school, is currently in development. Happy to wear the hat of playwright, Hernandez also heads Factory Theatre’s education/outreach program.

At the helm of this stellar production is Nina Lee Aquino, who engineered last year’s hit, Banana Boys and produced the record-breaking 2006 CrossCurrents Festival. “This play represents the next stage of fu-GEN’s development as a company. As a follow up to Banana Boys, it is a bold new direction. Singkil uses traditional storytelling. It’s linear. It’s gentle, in many ways. It’s quiet, but at the same time, it possesses the same sort of magic and theatricality that we saw in Banana Boys. It offers us a chance to push ourselves as artists and, in turn, invites our audience to grow and explore the Asian-Canadian Diaspora with us.”

Yvette Nolan, Artistic Director of Native Earth Performing Arts and Production Dramaturge for Singkil concurs: “Catherine is a compelling and clear voice for the Canadian stage. I have no doubt that the production of Singkil will vindicate fu-GEN in its chosen course and contribute to the fabric of Canadian theatre.”

Bringing this touching tale to life is Nadine Villasin, playing Mimi. Best remembered as co-creator of Miss Orient(ed) alongside Nina Lee Aquino, Villasin runs The Carlos Bulosan Theatre and stars in the recently released thriller, Ang Pamana: The Inheritance by Romeo Candido.

Playing Mimi’s mother, Maria, is Karen Ancheta, who delighted audiences as Thaisa in Stratford’s production of Pericles and Choon-Yi in LKYTP’s Ghost Train. Maria’s friend, Norma, will be played by Rose Cortez, who is a co-creator in Carlos Bulosan Theatre’s upcoming project, People Power.

Fresh from appearing in last season’s Banana Boys is actor David Yee as Mimi’s boyfriend, Chase and Banana Boys playwright, Leon Aureus as Mimi’s father Nestor.

Camellia Koo, the Dora award-winning designer behind Bombay Black, takes on Singkil’s stunning set design. Stage Management by Dale Yim, Movement Coaching by Clare Preuss, Lighting Design by Arun Srinivasan, Costume Design by Jackie Chau, and Music Composition & Sound Design by Dora-nominated Romeo Candido.

Previews Jan 6, Opens Jan 11, runs to Jan 28
Factory Studio Theatre
125 Bathurst Street at Adelaide

Performances: Tuesday – Saturday 8:00 p.m., Sunday Jan 7th at 7pm, all other Sunday Matinees at 2:30pm, Saturday Jan 27 matinee at 2:30pm

Ticket Prices: Previews $12 (Student Hip Tix available $5); Tuesday-Thursday at 8:00 p.m. $23; Friday at 8:00 p.m. and Saturday at 2:30 p.m. $25; Saturday at 8:00 p.m: $30.50; Sunday Matinee Pay-What-You-Can ($20 if booked in advance); (Discounts for groups, students, seniors and Equity members)

Tickets available online at www.factorytheatre.ca or through Factory Theatre’s Box Office: 416-504-9971

NAAAP Toronto's December Holiday Cocktail Mixer Featuring Power NAAAP'ing

Friday, December 1, 2006;
Registration: 7:00 pm,
Power NAAAP'ing start 8:00 pm

Celebrate a joyous 2006 holiday season with NAAAP Toronto! This is a cocktail gathering for an evening of networking and holiday celebration. Savour complimentary hors-d'oeuvres and indulge in a cash bar while mingling with old acquaintances and making great new connections through one our most popular networking activities - Power NAAAP'ing. By the way, Rudolph dropped by to tell us that Santa Claus
may be visiting with some of his elves. Dress for the season, come with your bells and whistles to join in the fun and frolic!

Raq n Waq Lounge
739 Queen Street West, 2nd floor
(1 block west of Bathurst)
Toronto, Ontario M6J 1G1
Tel. (416) 504-9120
Web: www.raqnwaq.com

NAAAP Members Free
Non Members: $15.00 (Non members who RSVP, $10.00)

Mixer Includes:
* Complimentary hors-d'oeuvres served
* Attire: Business or Business Casual
* Remember to bring lots of business cards!

RSVP prior to Thursday, November 30, 2006 - 5:00 pm via email to rsvp@naaaptoronto.org or directly on our website www.naaaptoronto.org

What is Power NAAAP'ing

- Are you shy and don't know how approach people at our mixers?
- Do you feel like you only meet one or two new people at our mixers?
- Do you feel that when you meet someone you don't have anything to say after 5 minutes.
- Do you want to make more connections at our mixers but haven't been able to?
- Or would you like to meet a bunch of people and then chat more later?

If you said yes to any of the above, then you don't want to miss- Power NAAAP'ing.
We will help you meet at least 10-20 people in one hour!! Talk about effective networking!!

It's easy! Sign up, and participate at the Power NAAAP'ing at 7:00 pm. and by 9:00 pm, you would have met 10-20 new people!!!

Don't feel like joining in on the excitement, that's okay too. Drop by and enjoy the holiday spirit!

Q's and A's:

- What type of people can you expect to meet?
Professionals just like you. With busy schedules, huge career and family demands, this is a quick and simple way to network. How often do you go out and have the chance to meet 10-20 people in one night?

- Should I come alone or with friends?
It's totally up to you. We aim to make the night as comfortable and fun as possible for you, so if you feel better coming with some friends, they're welcome to join as well.

- What should I wear?
Be comfortable. These are casual events, but for the professional individual. Often people come directly from work, but if you do have a chance to change, wear something that makes you feel good and make a professional impression.

- How will I know what to talk about?
We will give each table a suggested topic of conversation. If you feel stumped, talk about that. Otherwise you are free to discuss anything you like.

- What time does the event start?
The Business Mixer starts at 7:00 pm, but Power NAAAP'ing begins at 8:00 pm sharp. There is a lot of networking
to be done, so don't be late! We suggest that you arrive early to sign-in.

- How long does the event last?
Power NAAAP'ing will run for one hour (approximate based on the number of participants). After that you are free to stay and mingle if you would like until the end of the evening. This is a great way to meet those who you did not have the chance to meet.

NAAAP Toronto's signature monthly Business Mixers coupled with our Professional Development Series are designed to be your professional community forum, enjoy lively conversation, mix and mingle, build new contacts and get re-acquainted with old ones at some of Toronto's most popular evening hot spots.

North American Association of Asian Professionals - Toronto
P.O. Box 73-West Hill, Toronto Ontario, M1E 4R4
Hotline/Fax: (416) 439-9700

Check out <> for the latest in news, events and
membership information.

"Local Development Across a National Network"
A Canadian Chapter of the National Association of Asian American Professionals
, NAAAP Chapters/Ventures: www.naaap.org/NAT/chapters.asp

Pacific Rim leaders to issue statement on North Korea nuclear issue

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - Pacific Rim leaders will issue a joint statement on their worries about North Korea's nuclear weapons program, a senior U.S. official said Saturday, as officials from three countries tried to hammer out a joint strategy for upcoming negotiations with the communist country. "There is a statement. I think it's pretty well agreed," National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley told reporters. "I think we're pleased with that statement and I think it will be a good contribution to the diplomacy."

A draft of the statement expresses "strong concern" by the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum about the North's first nuclear test on Oct. 9 and its missile launches in July, saying they pose "a clear threat" to the goal of a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.

It urges "concrete steps" by the North in living up to commitments it made to drop its nuclear program in exchange for aid and security guarantees. It also calls for the quick resumption of six-party talks - involving the U.S., China, Japan, Russia and the two Koreas - that the North agreed on Oct. 31 to rejoin after a year-long boycott.

It was unclear whether the statement would be included in the leaders' final declaration or issued separately. Some countries had reportedly resisted a joint statement, either unhappy about setting a precedent by intervening in a country's internal affairs or trying to avoid the annual economic summit being overshadowed by a security issue.

Chinese President Hu Jintao said the new round of six-party talks, which could start as early as next month, will be crucial. Other officials have said the negotiations will lose credibility if they don't make real progress in getting the North to stop developing nuclear weapons.

"Right now, all parties need to be flexible and stay calm and exercise self-control and prevent a deterioration" in the situation, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said Saturday after Hu met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

South Korea, Japan and the U.S. have been trying to forge a unified negotiating strategy for the talks - intensive talks started Wednesday and have continued virtually nonstop - but South Korea remained reluctant to join Washington's call for tough measures against the North.

U.S. President George W. Bush failed to win a pledge from South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun to fully participate in a U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative, or PSI, that is largely aimed at stopping North Korean weapons traffic at sea.

Bush and Roh met early Saturday, then held talks with Abe. Roh also met Abe separately, and the South Korean and U.S. foreign ministers also were meeting. Bush also talked with seven leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, with the North Korean issue on the agenda.

South Korea has been reluctant to take moves that would upset the North, wary of the possibility of greater tensions.

South Korean President Roh said his country "is not taking part in full scope" in PSI but would "support the principles and goals."

Bush tried to put a positive spin on the disagreement, saying he and Roh have a mutual desire to "effectively enforce the will of the world" through UN sanctions imposed on North Korea for its nuclear test.

"I appreciate the cooperation we're receiving from South Korea for the Proliferation Security Initiative," Bush said.

South Korea's foreign minister-designate, Song Min-soon, played down the apparent division, saying the two leaders had "an accurate understanding" of each other's position.

The two leaders also discussed what they could offer - in terms of aid and security guarantees - to the North in exchange for its taking steps toward dismantling its nuclear program, Song said, without elaborating.

South Korea's efforts to dispel perceptions of friction with Washington came just a day after it suggested that the U.S. needs to show more flexibility at the six-party talks.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Cabinet will decide navy deployment regarding Korean cargo, O'Connor says

QUEBEC (CP) - Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor says the federal cabinet as a whole will have to decide whether it wants the Canadian Navy intercepting illicit North Korean cargo. There has been no formal request from the United States so far for such a mission, he told reporters on Friday after speaking at the NATO Parliamentary Association meeting in Quebec City. But O'Connor qualified his remarks by saying he has been out of the office all week on a speaking tour to drum up support for the Afghanistan mission.

"What we'd have to look at is the size of the (deployment) and how to sustain it," he said.

"We have to do an assessment. We have not been formally approached."

The Globe and Mail reported Friday that U.S. and Canadian officials have discussed naval co-operation as a way to counter North Korea's nuclear program.

The Conservative government apparently agrees in principle with the project, but Ottawa has not announced the deployment of ships.

North Korea exploded an atomic warhead last month, raising fears the cash-starved regime might try to sell nuclear material to terrorist groups.

The UN Security Council has authorized the interception of ships to or from North Korea to look for material that can be used in nuclear weapons.

U.S. officials say Canada has more than a dozen modern frigates and other warships that could help track cargo vessels suspected of carrying illegal weapons.

State Department spokesman William Strassberger in Washington said Friday that assistant secretary of state Kristen Silverberg was in Ottawa last week talking with Canadian officials about UN-related matters and the North Korea resolution did come up briefly.

"As far as proposing Canada take any specific measures, that didn't take place. The request wasn't made for that or for anything."

Last month, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay scolded North Korean leaders and said Canada was prepared to stand with its allies to enforce United Nations sanctions against the isolated Communist state.

Ottawa has a "direct interest" in halting the proliferation of nuclear weapons material in the Pacific Rim, he said on Oct. 15.

But MacKay stopped short of committing the Canadian navy.

A defence analyst and former admiral has warned that while its ships are relatively new, the navy does not have enough of them to maintain separate deployments in different parts of the world.

Fred Crickard, a former rear admiral and author of several scholarly papers on naval strategy, said Canada would likely have to end its support of the U.S.-led war on terror in the Arabian Sea.

The biggest hurdle in taking on mission interdiction off Korea is the navy's lack of a supply ship. The only West Coast-based replenishment vessel is in dry dock undergoing an overhaul and is not scheduled to be back in the water until early next year.

Cmdr. Jeff Agnew, director of naval communications, said DND had not received any official request.

"Do we have the capacity to do that?" Agnew said from Ottawa. "Yes. Is our Canadian navy very skilled at doing interdiction and maritime interdiction operations? Absolutely.

"We have lots and lots of experience in that. But the question really resides with government to say do they want us to do that and what is it they want us to do.

"Do we have capacity? Yes we do depending on what the mission would be and we don't know what that mission would be at this point in time."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

RCMP sweep nets huge seizure of knock-off clothing

CBC News

Following one of the largest seizures of counterfeit clothing in Canada, RCMP are telling consumers they play an important role in stopping the spread of fake merchandise.

Calgary police discovered a shipping container with hundreds of thousands of counterfeit products in a southeast rail yard on Thursday.

The knock-offs included Armani and Hugo Boss suits, and Versace, Chanel and Prada accessories. The container was shipped from Hong Kong and destined for Vancouver.

Sgt. Patrick Webb said consumers can protect themselves by shopping carefully and responsibly.

"No. 1 is the price and No. 2 … there's lots of times tags … are misspelled. [These are] some very simple things that seem to show up that should be indicators to the purchaser to say this is not right and don't buy that," he said.

Webb said the seized items were worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, leaving police to believe the shipment is linked to organized crime.

"The funding for this is just like drug deals where the funding has to come from somebody with deep pockets, and that normally is organized crime and/or possibly terrorists," he said.

Police are also investigating an unnamed Calgary store.

Harper urges human rights progress in talk with Vietnam's PM

CBC News

Prime Minister Stephen Harper raised a number of human rights issues Friday during a meeting with Vietnam's prime minister ahead of the APEC summit.

Harper began his discussion with Nguyen Tan Dung by describing Canada's growing trade relationship with Vietnam, one of Asia's fastest growing economies.

"This has been my first trip to this part of the world," Harper told his counterpart. "I do have a brother that has been involved in business in Vietnam, so I am aware of the growing business co-operation between the two countries."

The two leaders sat side by side in the Vietnamese prime minister's office, adorned with scarlet rugs, immense white chandeliers and a giant bust of late president Ho Chi Minh.

Canadian officials said the tone of the talks shifted during the private portion as Harper brought up as many as 10 cases of Vietnamese people who were harassed or jailed for their political or religious beliefs.

Vietnam's Communist leaders have been criticized for their religious persecution, particularly of Buddhists and Christians and a crackdown on press freedoms.

Harper told Nguyen that economic openness goes hand in hand with social and political freedoms.

"While recognizing that the country has progressed, there remains areas where it's possible to progress more, and that's what the prime minister underlined today," Gabriel Lessard, Canada's ambassador to Vietnam, told reporters.

A meeting between Harper and Chinese President Hu Jintao remained up in the air Friday.

Harper's spokeswoman, Sandra Buckler, said he is open to meeting with Chinese officials, who said they didn't appreciate "irresponsible meddling" in their internal affairs.

On Wednesday, Canadian officials said China rejected a private meeting because of Ottawa's criticisms of its human rights record and a case involving a Chinese-Canadian man being held prisoner.

However, on Thursday, a Chinese diplomat told a news conference the two leaders would meet.

Canadian ambassador in North Korea to press anti-nuke message

HANOI, Vietnam (CP) - Canada has sent a senior diplomat to North Korea to lobby for the dismantling of the North's nuclear weapons program, a tactic designed to add another layer of international pressure on the Communist government in Pyongyang.
Marius Grinius, the Canadian ambassador based in Seoul, South Korea, arrived in the North Korean capital on Thursday and is expected to spend a week visiting various officials. Grinius is accredited as the diplomat in charge of North Korea.

"We've dispatched our ambassador to Pyongyang . . . to deliver a strong message to North Koreans to ask them to cease, to give up their weapons and return to the six-party talks," said David Mulroney, Prime Minister Stephen Harper's adviser on foreign affairs and defence said Saturday.

The so-called six-party talks and how to respond to North Korea's detonation of a nuclear device last month have been the hot topic at the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit in Hanoi.

Five of the six countries included in the negotiations to dismantle Pyongyang's weapons are members of APEC: the United States, Japan, China, Korea and Russia. North Korea is not member of APEC.

Among those, the U.S., Japan and Korea made an aggressive joint pitch to Pyongyang on Saturday to come back to the table.

U.S. President George Bush went to APEC pushing the other states to sign on to a Proliferation Security Initiative that would target the trafficking of nuclear materials by North Korea at sea, an idea Canada supports - although not yet materially.

Korean President Roh Moo-hyun gave the initiative a lukewarm reception after meeting Bush, fearing that it would be regarded as provocative by the North.

Moo-hyun also talked about North Korea with Harper at a side meeting, and it was through the Korean leader's office that news of Canada's diplomatic foray first emerged.

The Korean government passed on the details to its reporters and the Canadian media shortly after the two leaders met.

It was the second day in a row Harper's staff attempted to block access by journalists to all but the first of Harper's activities in Hanoi - a contrast to the practice of other foreign delegations, including Korea, that invite reporters to watch the proceedings.

Harper has yet to answer questions on the North Korea issue, or on the APEC conference itself, while on his trip to Asia.

Canadian officials, speaking on his behalf, acknowledged that Grinius' trip to North Korea was done separately from the efforts of the six-party talks and without explicit consultations with the major players such as Washington or Beijing. Officials said the strategy would complement everything else that's being done to resolve the nuclear problem.

"We felt confident that having Marius go in now to deliver this message would be both helpful and entirely consistent with the message of a like-minded international community," said a government official.

Canada was one of the first countries to engage North Korea with diplomatic ties in 2001. A year later, after Pyongyang began to revive its nuclear ambitions, Canada slapped a "not business as usual" status on relations. But an official said that does not prevent Grinius from making representations there.

Grinius has direct experience in arms control and disarmament issues through his years at the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Harper also met with New Zealand's prime minister, Helen Clark, and Japan's Shinzo Abe over the course of the day.

A much discussed meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao had yet to materialize, but a Harper aide noted the men exchanged pleasantries during the opening meeting of the APEC forum.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

GM aims to grab 10% of Asian auto market by 2010, says regional chief

HANOI (AP) - General Motors Corp. (NYSE:GM), its market share shrinking at home, is turning to Asia to boost its profits, and aims to capture 10 per cent of the region's market by 2010, the U.S. automaker's regional chief said Friday. Top target markets are China and India, where rapid economic growth is fueling demand for cars, said Nick Reilly, president of GM Asia Pacific.

GM aims to sell 1.3 million vehicles in Asia this year to grab a 6.5 per cent market share, two-thirds of which is expected to come from China, he said. Last year, GM's sales hit just over one million units in Asia for the first time, giving it a market share of 5.7 per cent.

The company also plans to strengthen its presence in South Korea and Southeast Asia, especially Malaysia and Indonesia, Reilly said in an interview on the sidelines of a regional business forum here.

"We hope to increase our market share from 6.5 per cent to nearer 10 per cent over the next five years," said Reilly, who was appointed as GM vice-president and put in charge of the Asia-Pacific market in July.

"We think that in 10 years' time, China market may well be the largest in the world, overtaking the U.S. ... so to win in Asia-Pacific, you really have to win in China," he said.

General Motors, beset by sluggish domestic sales and crippling legacy costs, needs China - the world's third-largest auto market behind Japan and the U.S. - to provide growth it won't find in the U.S. and other Western markets as it tries to engineer a comeback.

GM has poured money into China with plans to spend $3 billion in 2004-2007. Last year, GM surpassed German rival Volkswagen AG to become the No. 1 foreign automaker in China, which has become General Motor's biggest national market after the United States.

Reilly said GM, which has six joint-venture plants in China, would expand its product offering for the Chevrolet brand and grow its dealerships in China.

In India, where GM is still a minor player, he expects sales there to grow rapidly once its new plant becomes operational in 2008, raising annual production to 240,000 cars from 65,000 currently. There are no plans for a joint-venture in India as the company is confident its range of mini and small cars could help push sales, he said.

"We are now going into the mini-segment. These vehicles are absolutely right for the Indian market...at least for now, in this next phase of expansion in India which will take us to 240,000 cars by the end of 2008, we are doing 100-per cent owned," he said.

In South Korea, he said GM is confident of growing its market share to "the mid-teens" from 11 per cent currently. The company is also exploring ways to boost sales in Southeast Asia, especially in Malaysia which is the region's biggest passenger car market and Indonesia, he said.

"I think it's important it's seen not just as a China play. We want to make our growth evenly spread throughout the region because there are great opportunities," he added.

Reilly said the Asia-Pacific region currently contributes about a fifth of GM's global sales and is the "biggest growth area for GM around the world." A strong presence in the region will help GM fend off competition from Japanese rival Toyota, which is racing to overtake GM as the world's largest automaker, he said.

GM now has production facilities in China, India, South Korea, India, Thailand and Australia.

"In Asia-Pacific, Toyota is well ahead of us because of its strength in Japan... but we have more than double our market share in the last three years, so we are certainly headed in the right direction. We've got good plans to keep it that way," he said.

"Globally, certainly our position in Asia Pacific will help us to compete with Toyota."

Reilly said GM would seek to compete in price-sensitive segments in emerging markets where Toyota is very competitive.

"People are getting off bikes and scooters for the first time into a vehicle. We have not been very competitive in these emerging market segments. That has not been GM's traditional area but that will change....we will have entries in those price-sensitive segments," he said but did not give details.

He said Asia-Pacific is also emerging as an important production base for GM. Although GM now export cars mostly from its factories in Thailand and Korea, he said China and India are expected to emerge as new bases in the long run.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

ARTS, POPULAR CULTURE AND SOCIAL CHANGE IN THE NEW INDONESIA

A ONE DAY SEMINAR
Friday, November 24, 2006, 8:30 – 4:00
C.K. Choi Building Conference Room (Room 120)

Organized by the UBC Centre for Southeast Asia Research in cooperation with the Consulate of the Republic of Indonesia, Vancouver.

This event brings together scholars who will each focus on one or another art form and present papers on the nature of changes since the fall of Suharto and with attention to implications for Indonesian society. The intention of this one-day seminar is to explore the ways in which artists, architects, craftspersons, filmmakers, musicians, theatrical performers and writers represent the nature of changes since the end of the Suharto era and its implications for Indonesian society as well as for the various forms of art and culture. It will examine the styles, the methods, the institutional framework and socio-cultural conditions in which current issues in the country are represented. Lunch will be provided; please RSVP to csear_ubc@hotmail.com by November 20, so that we can anticipate your attendance.

SCHEDULE

***Coffee and pastries (8:30-9:00am)

WELCOME / INTRODUCTION: (9:00-9:30am)
Michael Leaf and Bunyan Saptomo

MORNING (9:30am -12:00pm)
Literature: Manneke Budiman (UBC)
Literature: John Roosa (UBC)
Textiles: Michael Howard (SFU)
Architecture: Abidin Kusno (UBC)

***Lunch (12:00-1:00pm)

AFTERNOON (1:00-3:30pm)
Film: Tineke Hellwig (UBC)
Theater: Michael Bodden (UVic)
Music: Sutrisno Hartana (SFU)
Music: Franki Raden (UT)

Discussion: (3:30-4:00pm)

Rice sounds alarm on Chinese military spending

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The United States has some concerns about a rising China, including a military expansion that may be excessive, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Friday.

Beijing has spent heavily in recent years on adding submarines, missiles, fighter planes and other high-tech weapons to its arsenal and extending the reach of the 2.3 million-member People's Liberation Army, the world's largest fighting force.

Its reported military budget rose more than 14 per cent this year to $35.3-billion (U.S.), but outside estimates of China's true spending are up to three times that level.

“There are concerns about China's military buildup,” Ms. Rice told a television interviewer. “It's sometimes seemed outsized for China's regional role.”

Beijing insists its multibillion-dollar buildup is defensive, but it has alarmed some Asian neighbours and U.S. military planners who see China as a potential threat to U.S. military pre-eminence in the Pacific.

Asked whether U.S. foreign policy toward China is aimed at containing China's ability to flex military power, Rice turned the question to politics and economics.

“U.S. policy is aimed at having China be a responsible stakeholder in international politics,” she replied. “That means that Chinese energy, Chinese growth, Chinese incredible innovation and entrepreneurship, would be channelled into an international economy in which everybody can compete and compete equally.”

Ms. Rice, in Asia with President Bush for a regional economic forum, said China's economic growth “has been a net gain for the international system.” But she also ticked off a list of U.S. concerns including questions of economic fairness and China's record on human rights.

“There are concerns about a rising China, concerns about China's transition, concerns about whether the Chinese economy will in fact act in a way that is consistent with the level playing field that the international economy needs,” Ms. Rice said in the interview with CNBC Asia.

U.S. concerns are manageable within a relationship she described as strong overall, Ms. Rice said. She visited China last month to shore up United Nations sanctions against China's ally, North Korea, and she credited Beijing with co-operation in opposing the North's nuclear development.

Bush and Rice were both meeting with their Chinese counterparts during this weekend's Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation summit.

A U.S. congressional advisory panel on Thursday questioned China's willingness to be a more responsible international player, saying world prosperity depends on China's abandoning a single-minded pursuit of its “own narrow national interests.”

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission made 44 recommendations in its annual report to lawmakers. It calls on the United States to combat Chinese attempts to isolate Taiwan by supporting the island's membership in various world bodies, and urges Washington to pressure Beijing to help end the bloody conflict in Sudan's Darfur region.

“While China is a global actor, its sense of responsibility has not kept up with its expanding power,” said Larry Wortzel, chairman of the commission, which Congress created in 2000 to investigate U.S.-China issues.

The panel also admonished U.S. intelligence agencies, urging the United States to set up “a more effective program” for gathering information about China's military buildup and development.

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said she had not seen the report, but “we are against the attempt by any country or any organization to interfere with China's internal affairs under the pretext of the Taiwan question and impede our reunification course.”

The report said China's global reach extends beyond East Asia to the Middle East, Africa, South Asia and Latin America, where China “is coming to be regarded almost as a second superpower.”

New James Bond movie 'Casino Royale' cleared by Chinese censors

HONG KONG (AP) - Chinese censors have cleared the latest James Bond film "Casino Royale" without asking for any changes, a movie executive said Friday. The movie is reportedly the first Bond movie to be screened in mainland China. "The film has been approved and no cuts or changes have been requested," Li Chow, general manager at Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International and Sony Pictures Entertainment, confirmed in an e-mail.

"Casino Royale," starring Daniel Craig, is a Columbia Pictures movie.

Li said the movie will open in China Jan. 30, more than two months after its U.S. release Friday.

China usually only imports 20 foreign films a year and censors them carefully.

"Memoirs of a Geisha," which starred Chinese actresses Zhang Ziyi and Gong Li as Japanese geisha escorts, wasn't shown in China. There was speculation it might fan anti-Japanese sentiment.

There were also concerns about scenes set in Shanghai showing tattered underwear hanging from laundry lines in "Mission: Impossible III," although Chinese censors eventually approved the film.

The Hollywood trade magazine Variety reported earlier this week that "Casino Royale" is the first Bond movie to be screened in China, although pirated copies of other Bond films are available in the country.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Bush: Vietnam shows there is no "instant success" in fight for freedom

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - U.S. President George W. Bush, on his first visit to a country where America lost a two-decade-long fight against communism, said Friday the Vietnam War's lesson for today's confounding Iraq conflict is that freedom takes time to trump hatred. Embracing a former enemy that remains communist but is allowing capitalism to surge, Bush opened a four-day stay here that was fuelling an already raging debate over his war policy. Democrats who won control of Congress say last week's elections validate their call for U.S. troops to start coming home soon, while Bush argues - as he did again Friday - for patience with a mission he says can't be ended until Iraq can remain stable on its own.

A baby boomer who came of age during the turbulent Vietnam era and spent the war stateside as a member of the Texas Air National Guard, the president called himself amazed by the sights of the onetime war capital. He pronounced it hopeful that the United States and Vietnam have reconciled differences after a war that ended 31 years ago when the Washington-backed regime in Saigon fell.

"My first reaction is history has a long march to it, and societies change and relationships can constantly be altered to the good," Bush said after speeding past signs of both poverty and the commerce produced by Asia's fastest-growing economy.

Bush said there was much to be learned from the divisive Vietnam War - the longest conflict in U.S. history - as his administration contemplates new strategies for the increasingly difficult war in Iraq, now in its fourth year. But his critics see parallels with Vietnam - a determined insurgency and a death toll that has drained public support - that spell danger for dragging out U.S. involvement in Iraq.

"It's just going to take a long period of time for the ideology that is hopeful - and that is an ideology of freedom - to overcome an ideology of hate," Bush said after having lunch at his lakeside hotel with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, one of America's strongest allies in Iraq, Vietnam and other conflicts.

"We'll succeed," Bush added, "unless we quit."

In a day of meetings with Vietnamese leaders, the Vietnam-Iraq comparisons gave way to a focus on areas of co-operation. Those include continuing military-to-military links, work on AIDS and bird flu, trade, and co-operation on information about more than 1,300 U.S. military personnel still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War.

Bush was visiting the U.S. military's Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command here on Saturday.

He met in succession with Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet at the bright orange presidential palace, with Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung next door, and with the country's most powerful leader, Communist Party chief Nong Duc Manh, at the ruling party headquarters across the street. Each time, he and his hosts sat under a large bronze bust of Ho Chi Minh, the victorious North's revolutionary communist leader.

Nong said the president had "opened a new page in the relationship."

In the evening, Bush was being feted at a state banquet.

The president's welcome by the public was much less enthusiastic than the rock-star treatment afforded President Clinton when he came in 2000. Happy crowds thronged Clinton, who normalized relations with Vietnam.

But Bush encountered a country where many with long memories deeply disapprove of the U.S. invasion of Iraq - even as they yearn for continued economic progress to stamp out still-rampant poverty.

With all traffic halted, many Hanoi residents gaped at his long motorcade from their motorbikes. Other clusters of onlookers gathered before storefronts, a few waving but most merely looking on impassively.

Huynh Tuyet, 71, a North Vietnamese veteran who had his hand blown off fighting the Americans, recalled his own lesson.

"Even though the Americans were more powerful with all their massive weapons, the main factor in war is the people," he said. "The Vietnamese people were very determined. We would not give up. That's why we won."

Vietnamese officials eager for their country to take its turn in the global spotlight expressed disappointment that the president arrived without his expected gift - congressional approval of a new pact normalizing trade relations with Vietnam.

Surprising the White House, Congress failed to pass the bill this week as expected, leaving U.S. officials trying to explain to the Vietnamese that it would be sure to go through next month.

The visit was a delicate balancing act for Bush. He was trying to improve relations with a crucial Asian economic force and to urge Vietnam to make further steps toward political, economic and social reforms - even as his mere presence conferred special status on a communist government.

Inside the sprawling Communist Party headquarters, the president gently pressed his hosts on the need for greater political and religious freedoms. He was reinforcing this point Sunday with a visit to a Hanoi church, similar to a stop he made last year on a trip to communist China.

After remaining in Hanoi for a massive summit of 21 Pacific Rim leaders, Bush was travelling on Monday to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon and the country's economic heart, where he was showcasing Vietnam's booming economy with a visit to its stock exchange and discussions with business leaders. He was also going to a medical institute there that focuses on bird flu and AIDS research and taking in a cultural performance at a local museum.

On the sidelines of the summit, Bush was drawing on his powers of personal diplomacy in one-on-one meetings with Russia's Vladimir Putin, China's Hu Jintao, Japan's Shinzo Abe and South Korea's Roh Moo-hyun.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Canada sends Chinese official home over snooping charges: Epoch Times report

OTTAWA (CP) - Canada has sent a Chinese diplomat packing for spying on Falun Gong practitioners while posted in Ottawa, says a newspaper report. The government recently refused to extend the diplomatic visa of Wang Pengfei, a second secretary at the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa, according to the Epoch Times, which publishes in several countries and reports extensively on persecutions in China. Wang, who worked as an education officer, left the country prior to Oct. 25, when his existing visa was to expire, according to the report.

It first appeared in the paper's Chinese-language edition, and was published in English in Canada on Thursday.

On Friday, an official travelling in Asia with Prime Minister Stephen Harper confirmed the diplomat's visa had not been extended.

The official also confirmed the gist of the Epoch Times story.

Wang is said to have been gathering information on Chinese-Canadian devotees of Falun Gong, an ancient meditative practice banned by Beijing, as well as inciting students to help him.

China has branded Falun Gong an evil cult, seen by officials as a threat to Communist rule.

The allegation came amid reports the Chinese government snubbed Canada by calling off a meeting between Harper and Chinese President Hu Jintao. An official said Thursday the meeting would go ahead after all.

Wang's name appeared on the roster of foreign diplomats in Canada published in September, but is not included in the most recent index, from November.

Sources told the Epoch Times that Wang believed his rejection was tied to his activities in Canada, which went beyond his prescribed duties as a diplomat.

A Foreign Affairs spokesman said Thursday the department could not discuss diplomats posted to Canada.

A media officer at the Chinese Embassy did not return calls Wednesday or Thursday. The embassy has denied spying on Falun Gong practitioners.

The Epoch Times is a private news media company with corporate offices in New York. It states that it is an independent voice in news. Its English-language print edition is distributed weekly in Canada, often free of charge, and other major western countries.

The newspaper reports extensively on persecutions in China, especially of Falun Gong practitioners. On its website, it has a running tally on the number of people who have renounced the Chinese Communist party.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Ottawa to require background checks for port workers to boost marine security

MONTREAL (CP) - The federal transport minister announced Thursday that background checks of port workers are now being phased in across Canada to help prevent terrorist attacks. Marine workers who have access to certain restricted areas and who perform "certain duties" will need to have security clearance. The background checks will also apply to marine pilots, wharf operators, security personnel and seafarers.

Workers will undergo a criminal check, a CSIS security assessment as well as a check of the applicant's immigration and citizenship status.

"What we want to do ... is to make sure that we do not permit somebody who is a known terrorist or somebody who has some sort of a known association with a terrorist group, to have that kind of authorization to go into these areas," Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon told reporters.

The screening program will be phased in and initially apply to ports in Halifax, Montreal, Fraser River and North Fraser River in British Columbia, Vancouver, and St. Lawrence Seaway traffic centres in St. Lambert, Que., and St. Catharines, Ont. It is scheduled to be completed by December 2007.

Cannon said the Conservative government decided to move ahead with the new regulations after holding consultations and getting feedback.

"We've worked with port authorities throughout the country, we've worked with civil rights groups, we've worked with labour groups on this issue," Cannon said.

He also said someone with a criminal conviction will not be prevented from working in restricted zones.

"Somebody, for instance who, when he was 16, 17 or 18 years old was caught stealing in a store and had a criminal record, that's not the kind of person who is going to be excluded for this," Cannon said.

Liberal Senator Colin Kenny said he's worried the regulatory change, which targets terrorists, may not be enough.

"This has a smell to it that makes it look like a half-measure, he said in an interview.

But Kenny pointed out that according to police, "where you have criminal groups that are active in a port, it makes it much easier for terrorists to function."

He also said it's not clear how many people will actually be included in these checks.

Kenny said just like airport workers, all port workers should have to go through a screening process.

His preoccupation is with organized crime families, the Hells Angels "and organizations police refer to as narco-terrorists. . .people who smuggle drugs in order to finance terrorist activities."

Gord Helm, head of security for the Halifax Port Authority, said Ottawa is just doing what other major ports around the world are doing.

However, he also said the screening process could create concerns for some workers.

"Every effort is being made to make sure the process is open and fair and actually answers the concerns of organized labour," Helm said.

"The denial of a Transport Canada security clearance does not necessarily mean that you're denied work. It means you're denied access to certain areas or types of work in the port. It doesn't mean that you lose your job."

Cannon also announced $42 million in funding for 386 security projects at 101 marine facilities across the country.

He also said he was expanding the program to cover Canada's ferries, which were not originally included.

It was scheduled to end in November 2007, but is being extended to November 2009.

"What we're doing basically is we're catching up to a lot of things that had been excluded previously. The government of Canada since 9-11 has invested over $10 billion in security measures and I think we've done it on a risk assessment basis."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Canon still No. 1 in U.S. digital camera shipments, reports IDC

Canon Inc., Tokyo, Japan, had the biggest market share in digital camera shipments in the United States in the three months to September, keeping its top position for the third straight quarter, researcher IDC said on Thursday.

Canon expanded its shipments in the quarter by 14 percent to 6.8 million units, accounting for 19 percent of the total U.S. market. Sony Corp., Tokyo, Japan, was No. 2 with a 15 percent market share.

Eastman Kodak Co., Rochester, N.Y., was the only U.S. company in the top five digital camera makers, and ranked No. 3 with 13 percent, down from a 15 percent share it had in the second quarter, IDC said.

Nikon Corp., Tokyo, Japan, came in No. 4 with an 11 percent share, slightly ahead of Samsung Electronics, Seoul, Korea.

Malaysia's first astronaut to experiment with gravity by playing kiddie games

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) - Malaysia's first astronaut will do what no one in space has done before: play traditional Malay children's games without gravity.
The astronaut - yet to be selected - will play batu seremban, or "five stones," and spin traditional Malay tops in space, Agriculture Ministry parliamentary secretary Rohani Abdul Karim told legislators in parliament, according to national news agency Bernama.

Batu seremban involves throwing and catching stones, and is usually played by young girls.

"The main purpose of launching an astronaut in space is to conduct experiments in microgravity," Rohani said. "These conditions are not available on Earth . . . and this is an opportunity for our scientists to prove their mettle."

Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, 34, and Faiz Khaleed, 26, are vying to join a Russian space expedition for eight days in September next year.

Sheikh Muszaphar is considered the "priority" candidate while Faiz is the reserve option, the government has said. They were selected from more than 10,000 candidates.

Both are currently in Moscow undergoing training.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Pacific Rim countries pledge 'bold' concessions to restart world trade talks

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - Pacific Rim officials pledged "bold" concessions Wednesday to resurrect collapsed world trade talks, while negotiators on the sidelines of their conference mounted a co-ordinated drive to get North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program. The 21 members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum in Hanoi prepared a draft statement reflecting a widening campaign to salvage World Trade Organization talks that foundered in July in a spat over agricultural subsidies.

While short on specifics, the draft, obtained by The Associated Press, committed APEC members to do what they can to put the negotiations back on track. Europe, a major player in world trade talks, is not part of the APEC conference.

"We are ready to break the current deadlock: each of us is committed to move beyond our current positions," the draft read, adding that steps could be taken to broaden agricultural market access, make deeper reductions in farm subsidies and cut tariffs.

"We expect our partners in other regions to be similarly engaged and bold," the draft concluded.

On the sidelines of APEC, nuclear envoys from the U.S., South Korea and Japan met in an effort to map a strategy for persuading North Korea to give up its ambitions to build nuclear weapons.

North Korea exploded an underground atomic device on Oct. 9, triggering international outrage and UN Security Council sanctions before it announced it would return to six-party nuclear disarmament talks. North Korea has boycotted those negotiations for a year.

"We had some in-depth, substantive discussions on what outcome we should try to achieve," top South Korean nuclear negotiator Chun Yung-woo said after meeting for two hours with his U.S. and South Korean counterparts - one of at least three sets of talks on the issue expected at APEC. "I think we're making good progress."

Chun warned of the consequences of being unable to convince North Korea to drop its nuclear weapons program when the six-party talks resume, probably next month. Many fear that the North's nuclear ambitions could trigger a regional arms race.

The five countries engaging the North on its nuclear program - including Russia and China - are putting special emphasis on co-ordinating their positions ahead of the talks to bolster the chances of making progress. Washington and Tokyo have already stated further talks would be pointless unless they lead to North Korea verifiably abandoning nuclear weapons.

"No one - China, nor Russia nor any of the three of us - has any intention of accepting North Korea as a nuclear state," U.S. envoy Christopher Hill said after meeting with Chun and Japanese envoy Kenichiro Sasae. "I think we've all made that very clear."

The two-pronged action Wednesday signalled the main issues expected to dominate discussions on the weekend, when U.S. President George W. Bush, Chinese President Hu Jintao, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other APEC leaders hold their summit in Hanoi.

The moribund WTO talks - the so-called Doha round - have emerged as the top economic item of the summit. The round collapsed four months ago due to differences between the United States and Europe over farm subsidies and tariffs, and no new talks are scheduled.

WTO head Pascal Lamy attended Wednesday's meetings of trade and economic ministers, suggesting the group was hoping for real progress in reviving the stalled global trade talks.

An agreement at the weekend summit on a way to revive the talks could help move them forward, despite the absence of the European Union and other important players such as India and Brazil, said Chris DeCure, chairman of APEC's Committee on Trade and Investment.

"I think we'll see some very important outcomes," DeCure said. "Progress on the Doha round is our No. 1 priority, there is no question about that."

A separate draft statement to be released after the weekend summit warns that grave economic consequences would result from the failure of the global trade talks. The draft urges negotiators to reconvene and be more flexible.

WTO members want to conclude negotiations before Bush's authority to negotiate a trade deal that can be submitted to Congress for a simple yes-or-no vote without amendments expires in mid-2007.

APEC, formed in 1989 as an economic forum, has rapidly expanded its agenda in recent years to cover political, security and even environmental and health issues. Its members - including the U.S., China, Japan and Russia - comprise 57 per cent of the world's economy, 45 per cent of its trade and 41 per cent of its population.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Canadian Russell Peters's career was a modest success – until MySpace boosted him into another league

A comic who's sitting pretty
MICHAEL POSNER
Globe and Mail

Making your name on the international comedy circuit is no simple matter. Ask Russell Peters. For years, the Canadian comic hopscotched around the globe, slowly building a profile in Britain and Asia. And by most standards, he did very well. Exploiting a gift for foreign accents and making gentle mockery of ethnic and cultural stereotypes, Peters, 36 -- the son of Indian immigrants, born and raised in Brampton, Ont. -- toured widely, a solid performer with an engaging conversational style. He wasn't exactly rich, but in a tough business, he was a bona-fide success story.

But in July, 2003, an event occurred that was to boost Peters to another level. The event had nothing to do, per se, with Peters or even with comedy, but its effect on his career has been electric. The event was the launch of MySpace.com, a communal website that allowed Internet users to share just about everything. Among the things they started sharing were video clips of Peters's performances. Soon, tens of thousands of users were watching the clips and posting comments. Of course, MySpace was soon joined by YouTube.com and in no time at all Russell Peters couldn't walk down the street in Los Angeles, where he now resides, without being stopped by fans. Not that he minds. It is, he says, the best part about becoming something of a celebrity.

Web exposure has simply whetted demand. In the coming weeks, Peters will play in Chicago and New York, followed by a seven-city tour of Australia. Many of these dates are already sold out. When he played London's Hammersmith Apollo venue last month (capacity 3,700 people), it was standing room only.

Torontonians will have a chance to see him, briefly, when he appears at a benefit performance on Nov. 20 for Gilda's Club, which supports people living with cancer. The evening, hosted by Eugene Levy, also features Eric McCormack, Jann Arden, Sandra Shamas, Sean Cullen, Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood.

Meanwhile, Peters's new DVD, Outsourced, based on his Comedy Central special that aired in August, is a very hot number.

It's gone quadruple platinum in Canada -- that's more than 40,000 units -- in a matter of weeks. He has bought himself a new Porsche Cayenne and has remodelled his house overlooking Los Angeles.

"I'm living the Canadian dream," he acknowledged when I caught up with him recently by telephone as Peters was sitting down for a 3 p.m. brunch, having done a show the previous night at L.A.'s Wiltern Theater (45 bucks a pop) and having been up until 5 a.m. "I'm feeling pretty good about it all. There's no downside. I'm sitting outside in California and it's 93 degrees."

Peters's new status has taken his income to new levels as well. "I don't want to toot my own horn," he says, "but beep, beep, you know. I didn't see it coming, in the same way the industry did not see me coming."

He's about to make the network rounds again in Hollywood for talks about a possible sitcom. Earlier discussions with Fox fell through. Peters seems reconciled to the roulette wheel that governs TV decisions. "It is like goldfish," he says. "If one doesn't make it, you go out and get another one." And he's busy enough with his stand-up career that if no TV deal materializes, he wouldn't complain.

In the United States, he has even slowed the pace of his appearances, performing now mainly on weekend dates. But with his international gigs, he says he's still onstage 180 to 200 nights a year. The downtime is spent either writing or in meetings to discuss his career. His older brother, Clayton, is his manager. "It's in the family. You know how my people do."

As a comic, Peters's strength is taking real-life situations -- for example, his mother's attempts to find him a nice girl -- and giving them a nice comic twist. "A nice girl," he says at the end, "is one that goes home in the morning."

Despite his mother's best efforts, Peters has never married. "I don't know if that's the road for me," he says. "I love women too much to marry them."

He's not afraid to poke fun at Asians, their accents, idiosyncrasies and predilections.

"Lots of Asians in the audience tonight, I see," he'll say. "Nice. Of course, I knew that from all the Honda Civics in the parking lot."

But the humour is so light and free of rancour that it gives no offence. Indeed, the more he mocks them, the more they seem to want. "The most common comment I get from audiences is that they're happy someone has finally recognized them. I guess they feel like an invisible minority. "So I get, like, 'Hey Russell, when are you going to do some Cambodian jokes?' . . . Okay, I'll get right on it."

Peters's parents emigrated to Canada from Calcutta in 1964. He grew up in a mixed-race neighbourhood and encountered more than his share of racism. But while it bothered him, he found humour an effective antidote.

"More annoying than funny" as a kid, Peters made his debut -- "on a Tuesday night in November" -- at Mark Breslin's Toronto Yuk Yuks club 17 years ago. He was 19. "I was horrendous, but I got enough giggles that I wanted to do it again. Mark was very good to me, very gracious. He let me get onstage as often as I needed to."

Grey Cup now a worldwide event as television coverage covers globe

Canadian Press

WINNIPEG (CP) - The Grey Cup game has become a worldwide event - at least on television.

Broadcasts of the 94th Grey Cup game between the Montreal Alouettes and B.C. Lions will have unprecedented reach - from the United States, Europe and Latin America to the Middle East, the South Pacific and Africa.

Trajectory Sports and Media Group, the league's international broadcast distribution partner, has "taken the Grey Cup's global exposure to new heights," CFL commissioner Tom Wright said in a statement.

While CBC will air the game in Canada (6 p.m. ET), it will also be available in 61 million homes in the United States in standard definition and 12 million in high definition.

Added to the broadcast list this year are ESPN Dos, which serves 20 Latin American countries, and ESPN International, which serves Australia, New Zealand, Micronesia, Fiji, Pulau and the Marshall Islands.

Back from 2005 are Fox Sports International, which will show the game in Turkey, Israel and other Middle East countries and the U.S. Armed Forces Network, which is picked up in 172 countries, as well as the North American Sports Network, which reaches most of Europe.

About 150 million mobile phone users can also access the game in the U.S. through Verizon, Cingular or Sprint.

The game can also be heard on SIRIUS satellite radio in Canada on channel 186.

A year ago, an average of 3.168 million viewers tuned in to CBC to watch the Edmonton Eskimos beat the Alouettes 38-35 in overtime.

The most watched Grey Cup ever was the 2002 contest between Montreal and Edmonton, which drew 4.4 million viewers to CBC.

The record audience for a sporting event in Canada, with more than 10-million English and French-language viewers on CBC, was the Canadian men's gold medal hockey win over the U.S. at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics.

Dozens line up to buy amid boil-water advisory in B.C.

VANCOUVER (CP) - Some people took the boil-water advisory for Greater Vancouver in stride, buying it in bottles or boiling it. Others worried about the long-term effects and at least one woman was blissfully unaware. The advisory telling about two million residents of Canada's third-largest metropolitan area to boil their water for everything from drinking to scrubbing vegetables was partially lifted Friday, but it remained in effect for major centres such as Vancouver, Burnaby and North and West Vancouver.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper said from the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum in Hanoi, Vietnam that he hoped to speak to Premier Gordon Campbell within the next 24 hours about the situation in the Vancouver area.

"We're watching the Vancouver situation closely," Harper said. "I was a little concerned about what occurred there and we're hoping it will be resolved shortly."

Sandy Hill, who lives on the east side of Vancouver, was unaware of the boil-water advisory.

"I didn't know we weren't supposed to drink it. I drank a bunch this morning. I'm still here," she said giggling about her good health.

One of the precautions that came with the advisory was not to brush your teeth with tap water.

"I brushed my teeth," she said proudly, before realizing: "Do you have to boil water to brush your teeth?"

Vladimir Burakov stood outside a Costco in downtown Vancouver, waiting for it to open. He wasn't there to buy bottled water, although that was the case for many of the 100 or so people with him in the long lineup.

"I am from Russia and we get so many problems with water," he said, appearing amused at the concern. "You get used to it. It's not a big deal. It's always brown in Russia."

The decision to lift the advisory for some of the outer suburbs brought relief to about half the people affected Thursday, but about 900,000 were still faced with a weekend of having to boil their water.

They're the people who get their water from the Seymour and Capilano reservoirs, which were affected severely by storms that have pounded British Columbia's Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island this week.

Those two reservoirs are huge, natural lakes situated in the mountains directly behind North and West Vancouver. The problem with the water arose when the storm caused slides into the reservoirs on Wednesday.

Residents who were told they could turn their taps back on get their water from the Coquitlam reservoir, which didn't suffer the effects of mudslides.

Johnny Carline, chief administrative officer for the GVRD, told a news conference turbidity levels were dropping steadily.

The district has a computer program that monitors turbidity every 30 seconds.

Dr. Roland Gasparini, medical health officer for the Fraser Health Authority, said no bacteria or parasites have been detected, but said officials don't have much experience with what could happen with such "extreme" turbidity levels.

"This is very much precautionary," he said. "We don't take boil-water advisories lightly. The implications are great for many, many people and institutions."

Where once turbidity was considered only ugly, not harmful, recent research has shown that when dirt is suspended in the water, bacteria and parasites cling to the particles, making it more difficult for chlorine to kill them.

The storm has also left roads impassable in some communities.

On Friday, Tahsis, Gold River and Bamfield were still cut off from the rest of Vancouver Island, with people stuck on either side of impassable roads.

Derek and Marta Kasper and their 11-year-old German shepherd Casey were waiting anxiously to hear when they could get home to Tahsis.

The family has been stranded on the Campbell River side since the Gold River and Tahsis roads washed out.

On Sunday, the province's southwest region is expected to be hit by another storm with strong winds.

Restaurants, care homes, day cares and even gyms were relying on bottled water, even though some had access to water out of their filtration systems.

Despite blanket news coverage of the water crisis, there were reports of people and businesses who had not heard about the advisory, including some non-English speakers. Officials acknowledged advisories had not been issued in other languages.

Swamped staff were making notifications based on priorities - hospitals, care homes, large restaurant chains, et cetera.

Nick Whitle, an administrator at the Inglewood long-term care residence in West Vancouver, said his facility is using bottled water and has pre-ordered at least until the end of next week.

"Of course, a lot of other facilities are using bottled water, so the supplies seem to be dwindling in certain places."

Jack Lamont was another customer who arrived early at the Costco outlet. He is part-owner of four downtown restaurants and hoped to buy as much bottled water as he could get his hands on.

"It's a bit of a scenario because you need water every day just for cleaning hands or cooking and also to give to your guests when they come."

But when the doors opened, staff announced they were all sold out.

In a city known for a coffee shop on every corner, some cafes decided it's too big a task to boil litres and litres of water to keep the machines going, while others were brewing up a storm with filtered or boiled water.

Angie and Candace sat at a downtown cafe, sipping from water bottles.

Candace has a small child and worried about giving her a bath.

"I wouldn't put my daughter in the tub," she said. "She likes to take a sip or two. I'm sure it wouldn't kill her but who wants to play around with that kind of thing?"

Another 100,000 people in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island and 1,500 in Chemainus, south of Nanaimo, have also been told to boil their water.

Meanwhile, the B.C. government announced residents of Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland who suffered uninsurable losses in this week's storm will be eligible for compensation under the Disaster Financial Assistance program.

Homeowners can receive up to 80 per cent of claims over $1,000 to a maximum of $300,000.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

More PlayStation 3s coming soon: Sony

CBC News

Sony says more of its PlayStation 3 video game consoles are on the way after the initial shipment sold out on Friday, the first day it was available in North America.

"We are getting a second shipment next week, probably around the middle of next week," Matt Levitan , marketing and public relations manager for Sony Computer Entertainment of Canada, told CBC News Online on Friday. "We'll know by Monday or Tuesday when they will be available.

"We are flying in shipments from Japan and China, and will probably ship them directly to retail" instead of to Sony's warehouses, he said.

Levitan expects four or five shipments before the end of the calendar year, estimating each batch will be the equivalent of a quarter of the units available at launch.

He would not cite specific figures, but Sony had previously said 400,000 units should be available in North America on Friday. Canada traditionally receives about 10 per cent of product allocations for the continent, which would mean about 40,000 PS3s were destined for Canada.

But on Thursday night, Levitan told CBC News Online that the percentage of consoles in Canada was closer to eight per cent of the North American total – an estimated 32,000 if the full shipment arrived on time.

That would place subsequent shipments through the end of the year at 8,000 consoles apiece.

Shelves emptied quickly
Canada's largest BestBuy electronics store, in downtown Toronto, saw its allocation sell out in less than an hour to people who had camped out for as long as two days to get their hands on the highly anticipated console.

"There were 100 people who lined up to get a PlayStation 3 and they all got one," Tassos Tsiris, the store's business sales manager, told CBC News Online on Friday.

The location had 80 units of the premium model with a 60-gigabyte hard drive for storing content, which sells for $659.99, and 20 units of the $549.99 20-GB model.

Tsiris said people began lining up on Wednesday and by Thursday afternoon the line had grown to about 350 people.

"At 4 p.m. I started going outside every half hour and telling everyone after the first 100 people that they wouldn't be getting one because we didn't have any more," he said.

Customers brought in from the rain
The electronics retailer rented a corridor that connects the store with the Eaton Centre shopping mall, hired two security guards and moved the game enthusiasts and 100-200 of their friends and family inside out of the wind and rain overnight Thursday.

At 6 a.m., they distributed tickets to 100 lucky gamers and when the store opened at 8 a.m., let them purchase their consoles in groups of 20.

"They were very calm and happy," Tsiris said.

Future Shop, owned by BestBuy of Canada Ltd., took out full-page ads in major newspapers ahead of Friday's Canadian launch, saying its stores would open at 8 a.m. on Nov. 17 and would each "have a minimum of 10 PlayStation 3 units."

But a midtown Toronto store had just eight consoles at launch — six of the models with a 60-GB hard drive, and two of the 20-GB model.

Store staff said they had been told of the allocation on Thursday.

Shipping error blamed
The company's director of corporate communications told CBC News Online on Friday that the problem was due to a shipping error and was not the norm.

"By the time that store actually received the allocation and confirmed their numbers, we weren't able to make the adjustment to make that store have its 10 consoles," Lori DeCou told CBC News Online on Friday.

Sony said it expects to ship 1.1 million of the next-generation consoles to North America by the end of the year.

The PS3 is capable of rendering high-resolution graphics the likes of which are rivalled only by Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360, launched last year.

Nintendo Co. Ltd. launches its new Wii console with a motion-sensitive controller in North America on Nov. 19.

PlayStation 3 demand knocks out retail websites

CBC News

Overwhelming demand for Sony's new PlayStation 3 forced major electronics retailers websites offline on Friday, the North American launch date for the highly anticipated video game console.

The websites for electronics retailers Future Shop and Best Buy were unavailable for parts of the day due to unanticipated traffic prompted by gaming enthusiasts seeking to buy a PS3.

Both sites were sold out when they were back online.

"The FutureShop.ca site was never completely down," Lori DeCou told CBC News Online.

However, BestBuy.ca suffered a sustained outage with increasing traffic throughout the day, said DeCou, director of corporate communications for Burnaby-based Best Buy Canada Ltd., the subsidiary of U.S.-based Best Buy Co. Inc., which owns its namesake stores and the Future Shop chain.

"Volumes were beyond our expectations," DeCou said, explaining that traffic to the Best Buy site was "comparable to the type of volumes we see in holiday and Boxing Day."

She declined to give numbers for the amount of traffic the sites experienced.

DeCou speculated that because BestBuy.ca was offering 10 PS3s an hour for eight hours on Friday, people kept returning to the site in a bid to obtain the coveted console. She did not know how long the site was offline.

Just before 9 a.m. ET, FutureShop.ca flashed a notice saying it was "currently undergoing scheduled system maintenance to improve the quality and speed of your online shopping experience."

It came back up a few minutes later, but said there were no PlayStation 3s available.

Best Buy's Canadian site at BestBuy.ca was back online by 4 p.m. ET after saying it was doing maintenance for most of the day.

When the Future Shop site came back up, it offered shoppers a one-day-only deal on an alternative to the PS3. For $449, buyers could order Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360, with bonus hardware and games.

A PS3 model with a 20 gigabyte hard drive to store content costs $549.99 and a 60 GB model costs $659.99.

Future Shop took out full-page ads in major newspapers before the launch, stating that stores would each have a minimum of 10 PlayStation 3 units.

But on Thursday evening, staff at a Future Shop store in Toronto said they had only eight of the machines to sell.

DeCou said the shortage was the result of a shipping error.

However, Sony is expected to push shipments into North America before Christmas, the top season for retailers.

The total Canadian allocation could be as few as 32,000 units, out of a total of 400,000 that are supposed to be available in North America, a Sony Computer Entertainment Canada spokesman said.

PS3 buyers shot, threatened

Ottawa police arrested a man on Thursday night after an altercation in a lineup for the PS3. He was charged with public intoxication.

Police said those involved were not permitted to rejoin the line.
Elsewhere, two gunman in Putnam, Conn., tried to rob fans who had lined up to buy the consoles early Friday.

About 3 a.m., the thugs shot a buyer in front of a Wal-Mart store after the patron refused to hand over money.

The gunmen fled and the victim was taken to hospital, a police spokesman said. The victim's condition is not known.

In West Bend, Wis., a 19-year-old man was hurt racing others for one of 10 spots to buy a console outside a Wal-Mart.

At a Best Buy in Boston, employees gave out tickets to the first 140 people in line, entitling them to one of the 140 consoles it had.

With files from the Associated Press

Hong Kong tycoon pays US$160,406 for what may be priciest truffle ever

HONG KONG (AP) - A Hong Kong property tycoon and his wife have reportedly paid US$160,406 for a huge Italian white truffle, which may be the world's most expensive ever. Gordon Wu and his wife outbid connoisseurs from France and Italy to win the 1.5-kilogram Alba white truffle from an international auction on Sunday, a spokeswoman for the Ritz-Carlton hotel, which hosted the Hong Kong part of the auction, said Tuesday.

It was the second time Hong Kong bidders won a pricey fungus at the annual auction, held in Grizane, Italy and satellite-linked with Paris and Hong Kong.

Last year, a group of bidders in Hong Kong paid $121,800 for a 1.2-kilogram truffle, a purchase later named by Guinness World Records as the most valuable truffle bought at an auction, said Ritz-Carlton spokeswoman Claudia Hardt.

Guinness World Records officials couldn't immediately be reached to confirm the claim.

White truffles, known for their extravagant price tag and strong, garlic-like scent, grow underground with tree roots. They're eaten uncooked or shaved into pasta, salad, omelettes and other dishes.

"They're very unique. They're found all together and they've got a beautiful shape," said hotel cook Umberto Bombana of this year's prize truffle, made up of three palm-sized portions.

Bombana will prepare the giant truffle for a five-course banquet hosted by Wu on Thursday.

Proceeds from the auction - which also featured five smaller truffles weighting 220 to 520 grams sold to other Hong Kong bidders - will go to Mother's Choice, a Hong Kong charity that cares for pregnant girls and organizes adoptions, Hardt said.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Alberta posts $5.4-billion surplus, spending millions on projects

(CBC) - Alberta will end the year with an even bigger surplus than originally projected, so the province will spend nearly $1 billion on a backlog of building projects.

The provincial government announced Wednesday it will have an extra $5.4 billion in its coffers at the end of the fiscal year, $1.3 billion more than the last estimate.

Finance Minister Shirley McClellan said the Alberta economy continues to outpace the rest of Canada, with the province's unemployment rate falling to just three per cent in October.

"It's the lowest unemployment rate ever in Alberta," said McClellan. "Our population has grown by about 98,000, and that's the highest rate of growth in the country as well."

The Alberta surplus is now on track to be even larger than the federal government's budget surplus, which was projected Wednesday to reach $5.3 billion.

The province plans to pump another $930 million into a lengthy list of projects, ranging from regional water projects to helping with expansion plans at Edmonton Northlands and at the Stampede grounds in Calgary.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation criticized the province for going on a spending spree in the weeks leading up to Premier Ralph Klein's retirement from politics.

Federation spokesman Scott Hennig said some of the major spending decisions should be left to the new premier and his cabinet.

"On the way out the door, they're spending as much as they possibly can," Hennig said of the current cabinet. "They're spending it because they know that this is their last kick at the can."

Liberal finance critic Rick Miller said announcing billions of dollars in new spending every quarter makes a mockery of the annual provincial budget.

"This is not prudent financial planning in any way, shape or form," said Miller, who is calling for an immediate recall of the legislature to debate the new spending.

"If ever there was a time to eliminate health-care premiums and give every Albertan a break, today's the day."

McClellan said a huge influx of people to the province has multiplied needs, and the government is doing its best to deal with the problems.

"We do look at the big picture. That is our job. And we try to match our expenditures to our fiscal ability and to providing the services that are important to the people that live here."

- with files from the Canadian Press -

© the CBC, 2006

Eased rules for foreign workers should help labour-strapped B.C. and Alberta

VANCOUVER (CP) - The labour-strapped provinces of British Columbia and Alberta should notice changes quickly under a federal government program to ease regulations on foreign workers coming to Canada, Immigration Minister Monte Solberg says.
"There are going to be certain occupations under tremendous pressure where employers are having trouble finding workers," Solberg told reporters after his announcement. "We will reduce the requirements that they have to go through to bring in those categories into the country. It will save them several weeks."

The announcement was made first in Edmonton - where Alberta's booming oil patch has drawn workers from many other sectors, creating huge labour shortages - and then in Vancouver.

The program is limited to B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan.

In B.C., the booming economy, especially in the construction industry, has left businesses pleading for help to ease the burden.

The federal government in July announced a "temporary work unit program," but the latest initiative goes further, said Solberg.

"It was important but it didn't go anywhere near far enough toward solving some of our labour market woes," he said.

In Edmonton, the minister released a list of 170 occupations with high demand, ranging from housekeepers and cooks to head nurses and chiropractors.

In B.C., there were 129 occupations on the list, including the expected long list of trades jobs, but also physicists, professors, editors and veterinarians.

Companies trying to find workers for those jobs will no longer have to advertise as extensively for Canadians to convince the federal government of their need.

The government's new program will dramatically cut the length of time to process an employer's application for workers. That timeline currently runs from 13 to 17 weeks.

Over the next 10 years, Solberg said figures suggested the shortage of workers in B.C. and Alberta could be as high as 350,000.

Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, welcomed the announcement.

"This change will allow the immigration system to respond better to the business community's needs," said Kelly in a statement from the federation's Western Canada office in Winnipeg.

Philip Hochstein, president of the B.C.-based Independent Contractors and Businesses Association of B.C., said the government listened to the industry.

"The construction industry has been asking for this kind of list for the past three or four years. The federal government finally listened to the construction industry and they deserve credit for that."

Alberta Premier Ralph Klein said any move to help the labour shortage was welcome.

"This was promised by Prime Minister Harper when I met with him last spring. I'm glad that he has kept his word."

But labour federations in Alberta and B.C. expressed concern. The Alberta labour group predicted the new program will allow foreign workers to be exploited and generally bring down wages.

"I do not trust Harper's government to protect either the foreign workers coming to Canada or to ensure Canadian workers are not pushed aside," federation president Gil McGowan said in a release.

Solberg dismissed the concern.

"We know there have been concerns about this but there are mechanisms to deal with it," he said.

"I'm concerned about it and I want to make sure that when people come here they are treated well."

Jim Sinclair, president of the B.C. labour federation, criticized Solberg for going the "itinerant worker route."

"We have said (through Canadian history) that if you're going to come here you get to become Canadian citizens," said Sinclair.

"A few employers see a short-term gain in bringing foreign workers in and having them vulnerable to exploitation."

Solberg also didn't think a more streamlined process for getting foreign workers into Canada might also make it easier for potential terrorists to enter.

"They (foreign workers) still have to go through the same process in terms of screening. We still check everyone for criminality, for security concerns including terrorism."

Although Solberg never mentioned it, Saskatchewan is also included in the announcement.

In Regina, Pat Atkinson, the minister of advanced education and employment, said she spoke to Solberg's office Wednesday and was told the province is in.

"I've been assured that employers in our province can already start to make use of the temporary foreign workers guide, which is going to help them cut through red tape."

She said while B.C. and Alberta have developed a list of "occupations under pressure," her province was working on it.

"We are in the process of developing our occupation under pressure list with the federal government."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Red Sox win bidding war for Japanese pitcher Matsuzaka

NAPLES, Fla. (AP) - The Boston Red Sox emerged Tuesday night as winners of the bidding for Daisuke Matsuzaka with a US$51.1 million offer and have 30 days to sign the Japanese pitcher to a contract. The Seibu Lions of Japan's Pacific League announced they had accepted the high bid for their prized pitcher, and the major league commissioner's office simultaneously confirmed at the general managers' meetings that the Red Sox had made the offer.

"We have long admired Mr. Matsuzaka's abilities and believe he would be a great fit with the Red Sox organization," Boston general manager Theo Epstein said. "Clearly, we believe Mr. Matsuzaka is a real talent."

If the Red Sox and Matsuzaka can agree to a deal by midnight on Dec. 14, he would join a talented rotation that already includes Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett and converted closer Jonathan Papelbon.

"We're excited to have won this part of the process and we're hopeful we can reach an agreement," Epstein said.

Matsuzaka is represented by Scott Boras, who last year negotiated the deal that moved centre fielder Johnny Damon from the Red Sox to the Yankees.

Epstein said the team would invite Boras, Matsuzaka and his family to Boston to begin negotiations. Boras said the sides planned to set up a meeting soon, but wasn't sure whether it would be in Boston, Japan or California.

In assessing the amount of Boston's bid, Boras compared Matsuzaka's marketability for the Red Sox to what outfielder Hideki Matsui has brought to the Yankees.

"It's the value of a No. 1 starter. It's much like Matsui and the Yankees," Boras said. "It shows the value of a player like this. He brings advertising dollars. He brings a network presence in Japan."

The previous high bid for a posted player from Japan was $13,125,000 by the Seattle Mariners for Ichiro Suzuki after the 2000 season. For selling their star pitcher, the Lions get the $51.1 million from Boston - only if the Red Sox sign Matsuzaka.

Unlike Matsui, Matsuzaka was not yet eligible for free agency.

"I'm very happy. I want Daisuke to realize his dreams of playing in the major leagues," said Hidekazu Ota, acting owner of the Lions. "I talked to him today, and he is very happy."

Even before the announcement, general managers had assumed Boston would be the highest bidder in the blind process.

"We'll congratulate the winner and move on," New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman said Tuesday afternoon.

The New York Mets also made an unsuccessful offer, while the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers were thought to be among the bidders as well.

"I'm very comfortable with the bid that we made," Mets general manager Omar Minaya said, sidestepping whether he would have topped Boston's offer now that he knew what it was.

Agents roamed the lobby at the hotel where GMs are meeting, discussing their free-agent clients. Some agents think the market will move more quickly this offseason because of the decision by management and the players' association to eliminate the Dec. 7 deadline for free agents to re-sign with their former teams unless they were offered salary arbitration.

"Pitching, as usual, is at a premium," Boras said.

Elsewhere, second baseman Mark DeRosa became the first major league free agent to switch teams, leaving Texas for a $13 million, three-year contract with the Chicago Cubs.

The Mets re-signed two players, agreeing to a $12 million, two-year contract with 41-year-old pitcher Orlando Hernandez and a $3.8 million, o ne-year deal with second baseman Jose Valentin.

Minaya said some teams are unsure of where the marketplace is going, "so if they could do something quick, they're going to try to do it."

Mike Mussina's agent, Arn Tellem, kept up talks with the Yankees on a new contract for the pitcher that likely will be worth $23 million to $25 million over two years.

"We're in the red zone," Tellem said.

With Barry Zito and Jason Schmidt heading a weak free-agent class, pitchers will get top prices.

"There are 30 clubs and probably three-quarters are looking for pitching," new Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. "There's a lot of interesting pitchers out there. At the end of the year, the teams that have pitching, and healthy pitching, are usually the ones that are around."

GMs, as usual, will hold their annual discussion Wednesday of whether to have instant replay available to umpires, a concept commissioner Bud Selig opposes. In the past, the idea hasn't garnered enough support.

"I guess we'll get a sense of that tomorrow," said Joe Garagiola Jr., a senior vice president in the commissioner's office.

There will also be talk Wednesday of whether to eliminate tie games, having them instead become suspended games. On Thursday, the GMs will discuss whether to have uniform standards for storing baseballs, a talk prompted by the use of a humidor by the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field.

As for the postseason schedule, nothing seems to have come of the idea floated by Selig to give wild-card teams fewer home games in the playoffs.

"That is not officially on the agenda, so I suspect that will be some good lobby talk," Garagiola said.

GMs did vote on one rule change, proposing that outright assignments to the minor leagues not count against the number of optional assignments a team has on a player. That must be approved by owners and the union.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Third Inter-American Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest Appropriate Authorities of the Organization of American States

The Honourable Beverley J. Oda, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Status of Women, reiterated Canada's New Government's commitment to Inter-American collaboration on culture and to the promotion of the ratification of the UNESCO Convention on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions today during her Keynote Address at the Opening Session of the Third Inter-American Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest Appropriate Authorities of the Organization of American States.

"Canada is committed to vigorously pursuing ratification of the UNESCO Convention on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions by a large number of countries representing all regions of the world, including the Americas," said Minister Oda who is chairing the meeting. "The Convention will ensure that all of us will continue to have a voice to express our identity."

Ministers responsible for Culture or Highest Appropriate Authorities from the member states of the Organization of American States are meeting in Montréal today and tomorrow to nurture an ongoing dialogue among nations of the Western Hemisphere, and strengthen their mutual understanding on cultural policy issues. Hosting the meeting in Montreal, on the eve of celebrations of the 400th anniversary of Quebec City and the birth of North America's francophone presence, is symbolic of the importance of cultural diversity.

"All of us assembled here today are aware of how important it is that our governments take appropriate measures to ensure that our peoples have a voice to express their identities," added Minister Oda. "It is by investing in our artists, our creators, and our various communities that we will build stronger societies and a more cohesive world."

Canada is working to foster inter-American dialogue on cultural issues by hosting this Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest Appropriate Authorities of the Organization of American States. Themes to be discussed include presentation and preservation of cultural heritage, cultural policies, education and identity, culture and the creation of jobs and overcoming poverty, and culture and the role of indigenous peoples.

The Organization of American States (OAS) brings together the countries of the Western Hemisphere to strengthen cooperation and advance common interests. It is the region's premier forum for multilateral dialogue and concerted action.

Giller winner tops bestseller lists

CBC Arts

Vincent Lam's Giller Prize-winning Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures was the top-selling work of fiction this past week, according to two top online bestseller lists.

Lam's interconnected stories from the medical world topped Amazon.ca's fiction list for the week ending Nov. 14.

And according to book retailer Chapters Indigo's online site, Lam's novel trails only the non-fiction advice book You: On A Diet: The Owner's Manual For Waist Management on its bestseller list.

Lam, a Toronto emergency room doctor, has been on a roll since his debut work of fiction won the Giller earlier this month. Last week, Shaftesbury Films announced Bloodletting would be turned into a medical drama on the Movie Network.

But he wasn't the only award winner to see a bump in sales. The paperback of Man Booker award winner Kiran Desai's The Inheritance of Loss was the No. 4 fiction book on Amazon's list, behind Ian Rankin's Naming of the Dead and Nora Roberts's Spellbound.

Rawi Hage's De Niro's Game, which lost to Bloodletting for the Giller, was No. 5 on Amazon's list.

Hage's novel about two friends in wartorn Lebanon is also on the short list for the Governor General's Literary Award, to be awarded on Nov. 21. The novel is 15th on the Chapters Indigo bestseller list, which does not distinguish among book genres.

Wife of man in Chinese prison hopeful PM will get answers on husband's case

TORONTO (CP) - The prospect of Prime Minister Stephen Harper raising concerns to the Chinese president about a Canadian citizen jailed in China has given the detained man's wife new hope for his release. Arrested in Uzbekistan last March and extradited to his native China in June, Huseyincan Celil could face the death penalty for his activism on behalf of China's minority Uighur population.

Kamila Telendibaeva, who since her husband's arrest has given birth to their fourth child, has not heard from Celil since March.

"I hope Stephen Harper is going to talk about my husband's case and to ask for his release because he is a Canadian citizen," Telendibaeva said from her Burlington, Ont., home.

"Did they take him to the courts? Did they make a decision yet? . . Is he alive or dead? We don't know... I am getting worried about him."

While the ultimate goal is his release from prison, Telendibaeva said China will likely be a tough negotiator and hopes to at least get some answers regarding her husband's health and well-being.

After China abruptly called off a private meeting between the two country's leaders earlier this week, Chinese officials said Thursday that President Hu Jintao would meet with Harper.

The prime minister has indicated that he would raise Celil's case despite China's assertion that it will not entertain discussions about human rights.

While some business leaders have suggested Harper could hurt trade talks by bringing up the subject, others maintain the two go hand in hand.

"Chinese and Canadian business people need to know that should a dispute arise, the agreements that China and Canada have are upheld," said Chris MacLeod, the Celil family's lawyer.

Under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, MacLeod said China is required to notify Canada if it has detained one of its citizens, provide government officials access to that individual and provide that individual with legal representation and a fair and transparent trial.

"Our consular officials do not know where Huseyin is. They have not been allowed access to him," he said. "We've now been months and we haven't heard of a charge."

China has not recognized Celil's Canadian citizenship, and his family says as a Muslim he is the victim of religious persecution.

Harper has also been criticized for his direct, no nonsense style of diplomacy - particularly with respect to his dealings with China.

Still, if Harper is to make any progress on issues of trade or human rights, some suggest he ought to try a different strategy when he meets with Jintao.

Harper is well within his rights to discuss the Celil case and China's breach of its international obligations, said Errol Mendes, a law professor at the University of Ottawa.

The prime minister should, however, take notes from colleagues who are more experienced in dealing with China, Mendes said.

"What I think is critical to understand in the relationship with China is their cultural imperatives require them to save face," he said.

"They have a term for it called 'mutual equality and benefit' which permits... criticisms to be made, but not in a way which would embarrass the country."

The Canadian Council on American-Islamic Relations has also thrown its support behind the prime minister.

In a press release, CAIR-CAN lauded Harper for promising to uphold Canadian values by addressing the Celil case.

"Developing strong economic ties with China is vital to ensuring that Canada's growing interests in the Asia-Pacific region are protected," said executive director Karl Nickner.

"However, this cannot be done to the detriment of fundamental human rights."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Harper kicks off APEC activities by meeting Vietnamese PM

HANOI, Vietnam (CP) - Prime Minister Stephen Harper kicked off his first trip to Asia on Friday with a meeting with the Vietnamese prime minister, where Canadian officials said he was expected to bring up the issue of human rights in the country.
Twenty-one leaders are in Vietnam for the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum. Harper was greeted by Nguyen Tan Dung in the grand entrance of the Vietnamese White House, the prime minister's office. Inside, the two men sat side by side in a room adorned with scarlet rugs, immense white chandeliers and a giant bust of the late president Ho Chi Minh.

Nguyen and Harper exchanged the customary niceties - Harper underlined Canada's growing trade relationship with Vietnam. Canada's exports to Vietnam increased by 84 per cent between 2004 and 2005.

"This has been my first trip to this part of the world," Harper told his counterpart.

"I do have a brother that has been involved in business in Vietnam, so I am aware of the growing business co-operation between the two countries."

On the human rights front, Vietnam has been criticized by observers for religious persecution and also for cracking down on journalists and publishers critical of the communist government. Human Rights Watch urged leaders to press Vietnam on the issue, noting Christians and Buddhists have been harassed by the government.

Last week, Canadian officials said those points would be raised by Harper.

The prime minister also wants to raise human rights and trade issues with the Chinese government. But an on-again, off-again bilateral meeting between Harper and Chinese President Hu Jintao has yet to be confirmed, amid strong language from both countries on the content of the face-to-face.

Harper later met with a group of Canadian business students who travelled to Vietnam as part of the APEC program. But because a Canadian reporter had asked Harper a question at the morning meeting with Nguyen, journalists were later blocked from attending that Canadian-organized event at a Hanoi hotel. A source said Harper is "embarassed" when reporters ask questions at events that are billed as photo opportunities.

Harper was scheduled to meet later with Australian Prime Minister John Howard at a private dinner.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Bush, speaking at Singapore university, affirms U.S. commitment to Asia

SINGAPORE (AP) - President George W. Bush took on anti-war and anti-free trade Democrats who won control of Congress in elections last week, saying "America must reject" any tendency toward isolationism. "We hear voices calling for us to retreat from the world and close our doors to these opportunities," he said in a speech at the National University of Singapore. "These are the old temptations of isolationism and protectionism and America must reject them. We must maintain our presence in the Pacific.

"We must seize on our common opportunities. We must be willing to confront our common threats and we must help our partners build more hopeful societies in this vital part of the world."

With China on the rise and his own stature weakened at home, Bush also sought to ease any doubts in Asia about the United States' long-term commitment to the region.

"In this new century, America will remain engaged in Asia because our interests depend on the expansion of freedom and opportunity in this region," Bush said.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Asia Pacific ministers focus on security, resuming North Korea nuclear talks

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Asian trading partners Thursday to ensure economic growth by confronting terrorism and other security threats, and foreign ministers hailed the expected resumption of North Korean disarmament talks. Trade and security dominated talks in Hanoi, Vietnam, at the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum ahead of a weekend summit to be attended by U.S. President George W. Bush, Chinese President Hu Jintao and other leaders in the 21-member group.

APEC, whose members represent 57 per cent of the world economy, was preparing a final declaration focused on urging a revival of global trade talks that collapsed in July in a spat between the United States and Europe over agricultural subsidies.

North Korea's Oct. 9 nuclear test was also high on the agenda. The test triggered international outrage and UN Security Council sanctions against the impoverished regime, which su'bsequently announced that it would drop a one-year boycott of six-nation talks on its nuclear weapons program.

Rice, who arrived in Hanoi early Thursday, told foreign ministers that security was needed to allow continued economic growth.

"Confronting the threats posed by terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, natural disaster, and pandemic disease is inextricably tied to the prosperity of the region," she said. "One can only imagine the consequences to our trade and growth if the security of this region was fundamentally compromised."

Rice also pledged US$1 million in new U.S. funding for an Asian trade development initiative and unveiled a U.S. program allowing expedited visas and other services for approved business travellers from APEC countries.

"We need to make it easier to do business in the region," Rice told an opening session of the forum.

Nineteen foreign ministers, including Rice, gathered for a breakfast meeting Thursday to declare there is more urgency than ever to convince North Korea to drop its nuclear weapons program after its underground test.

"Pressure must be put on the North Koreans. It must be made crystal clear to them that what they are doing is not acceptable," Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo said.

Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said there was a high degree of unanimity behind UN Security Council sanctions against the North and that "the six-party process is the right process."

The six-nation talks - involving China, Japan, Russia, the two Koreas and the United States - stalled a year ago when North Korea walked out over penalties imposed by the United States for alleged illegal activities by its government, including counterfeiting and money laundering. The North agreed on Oct. 31 to return to the negotiations, which are likely to be hosted by China next month.

Bush will also push the security agenda while in Hanoi. Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo said the U.S. president would meet with Southeast Asian on enhancing trade and counterterrorism cooperation when they meet on the sidelines of the summit this weekend.

Bush and leaders of seven countries belonging to the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations will meet Saturday in Hanoi, Romulo said.

Global trade will be a cornerstone of this year's summit.

According to a draft of a statement the leaders plan to issue, they will push for a resumption of world trade talks launched in Doha, Qatar, in 2001. The talks collapsed in July amid an impasse over farm trade concessions and other issues.

"Both as a trade issue and a foreign policy issue, the success of the Doha round is critical to global prosperity and security," Rice said.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Silk Road Music's cd nominated in the Pushing Boundaries category

Canadian Folk Music Awards
Autumn Cloud- journey with her Pipa

Silk Road Music's new CD that focuses on innovative compositions for the Pipa (Chinese lute) that reflect the vast musical experience founder Qiu Xia He has gathered in Canada and in her travels. As a musician, Qiu Xia has developed a unique style that combines traditional techniques,Western harmony and a great understanding of world folklore that she has gained in a lifetime of playing music. The CD project seeks to extend the language of the Pipa and provide a refreshing look at this extremely versatile instrument.

The material recorded on this CD reflects those experiences and speaks those languages: from traditional Chinese to a Celtic reel; from a folk song to a contemporary classic; from a Spanish guitar piece to a flamenco rumba; add a Brazilian baiao, a modern blues and a Pipa concerto.This musical journey includes some compositions by our friends as well as many pieces written by myself or with Andre Thibault, who is an important part of my life. Like our live performances, this album offers music from around the world which we love to play.

Autumn Cloud will be Silk Road Music’s 3rd recording. They are a professional Chinese ensemble that has been touring and recording since 1991. It has a consistently successful rapport with audiences and their last two CDs have won Best World Music Album at the West Coast Music Awards. Their debut CD, Endless, was also nominated for a JUNO.

The “Autumn Cloud” CD is an important next step in Silk Road Music’s vision to develop cross cultural repertoire for Chinese instruments and to bring that music to the world.

For more information contact:
Silk Road Music
Tel: 604-434-9316
e-mail: qxcloud@telus.net
www.silkroadmusic.ca

Beats Without Borders 2 Year Anniversary

Thursday Nov 23, doors 9pm
The Red Room (398 Richards)
10$ @ the door
http://www.beatswithoutborders.com

Join the BWB crew in celebrating 2 years of global fusion madness! With guest DJ and producer Jacob Cino, electric violinist Kytami, local hip-hop/bhangra crew BPM, the United Bhangra dance crew, and BWB resident DJs. Another rocking party at the Red Room :o)

China bans sale of condoms bearing image of 1960s communist hero

BEIJING (AP) - A Chinese man selling condoms with the image of Lei Feng, a communist hero model worker from the 1960s, has been told to stop, state media reported Monday. Zhang Zhiwen from the Ningbo municipality of eastern China's Zhejiang province put a photo of Lei Feng holding a gun on boxes of condoms he obtained in Guangdong province and advertised them for sale on his website, Xinhua News Agency said.

After media attention earlier this month, the Ningbo Industrial and Commercial Bureau ordered Zhang to stop selling the condoms immediately. Xinhua said the bureau also discovered Zhang's business licence was fake.

Lei Feng was a hero known in almost every Chinese household in the 1960s as a People's Liberation Army soldier who devoted himself to building China. He died in 1962. The public was urged "to learn from Lei Feng" after Chinese leader Mao Zedong praised his hard work and loyalty to the Communist Party.

Branding condoms with famous names is not a new trend in China. In September 2005, the Guangzhou Rubber Group produced two condoms with the brand names Clinton and Lewinsky.

Former U.S. president Bill Clinton is known for his AIDS awareness campaigns in China, where the disease is quickly spreading. He was impeached after trying to conceal an affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.

The company gave away 100,000 free Clinton and Lewinsky condoms to promote the brands.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Total government debt in Canada $2.7 trillion, Fraser Institute says

VANCOUVER (CP) - Total government debt in Canada is $2.7 trillion and each Canadian taxpayer owes $171,032 in federal, provincial, and local liabilities, according to a report released Tuesday by The Fraser Institute. The report by the independent public policy organization says federal, provincial, and local governments have accumulated $798 billion in direct debt and more than $2.7 trillion in total government liabilities. Total liabilities include direct debt and programs that the government has committed to provide, such as old age security and medicare.

Net direct debt - liabilities minus assets - of all three levels of government fell from $832 billion to $798 billion between 1999-2000 and 2003-2004. However, the report said, this is a miniscule decline compared to the growth of Canada's debt since 1990-1991 when our net debt stood at $533 billion.

Niels Veldhuis, senior research economist at the Fraser Institute and co-author of the report, said, "The decline in direct government debt is certainly a welcome development. However, the greatest concern for taxpayers is the growing unfunded liabilities associated with programs such as old age security and medicare."

The report says the unfunded liabilities of medicare, old age security and the Canada Pension Plan total $1.5 trillion and have increased by 19.7 per cent during the five-year period covered in the study. The unfunded liability of Medicare alone grew by more than 28.5 per cent between 1999 and 2003.

Among the provinces, the report says, Ontario carries the largest total liabilities per person at $92,490, followed by Quebec ($88,778) and Alberta ($87,630). Prince Edward Island has the smallest total government liabilities per capita at $64,841.

With the exception of Alberta, all provinces have total liabilities greater than 200 per cent of annual gross domestic product. The report states that if the government of Quebec, which has the largest total liabilities compared to GDP, taxed 100 per cent of all income, it would still take more than two and a half years to pay off all of its debt and program obligations.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Chinese love boat cruise takes only rich, good-looking passengers

BEIJING (AP) - A matchmaking love boat cruise open only to male millionaires and "good-looking and desirable" women is slated to set sail later this month, a state-run Chinese newspaper said Tuesday. Men on the cruise scheduled to go along Shanghai's Huangpu River must be worth at least US$250,000, the China Daily quoted organizer Xu Tianli as saying. Xu said more than 20 men had signed up for the Nov. 25 cruise and that half of those registered to take part were worth more than US$25 million.

Fewer than 30 of the 1,000 woman who applied were accepted, Xu said.

"Only those who were attractive in every category can take part in this event," Xu said, without giving the specific criteria interested female applicants had to meet.

"Rich men are normally very busy, and most of the women they meet are there for work or business, which these men consider to be unsuitable for relationships," Xu said.

One of the men who signed up for the cruise, identified only by his surname Sun, said "appearance is most important to me."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

PS3 stumbles on older games

YURI KAGEYAMA
Associated Press

TOKYO — Sony's PlayStation 3 game console, which went on sale in Japan over the weekend leading off a global launch, can't play some of the older games for the original PlayStation and the upgrade PlayStation 2, a company official said Tuesday.

Sony Corp. had billed PlayStation 3 as compatible with the previous PlayStation machines.

But Sony Computer Entertainment spokesman Satoshi Fukuoka said some of the 8,000 older games weren't working properly on PS3, making the wrong sounds or images, and some couldn't be played at all.

He declined to give a number for the games that weren't functioning, but he said the same problem is expected when the game console goes on sale in the U.S. Nov. 17. About 16,000 different games have been sold for the PlayStation and PlayStation 3 in North America.

Fukuoka said the problems in playing the older games were not a glitch and had been expected. Sony announced the problem on its web page Nov. 11, the day when the PS3 went on sale to lines of eager fans at Japanese retailers.

Users can punch in the name of the PS or PS2 game on the web page, and a list will pop up, telling you if the game can be played without problems or not.

For example, all the “Biohazard” series games can be played without problem, except for one in which a virtual gun won't fire properly, according to Sony's web page.

“We are sorry for the game fans that they cannot play all the games,” Fukuoka said. “But unfortunately some of these problems could not be avoided.”

PlayStation 3 is facing off in a three-way console war for this Christmas against Nintendo Co.'s Wii, which goes on sale Nov. 19 in the United States, and Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360, which had a year's head start over rivals.

Although response has been enthusiastic to the PS3, the launch hasn't been smooth.

Production problems meant that only 100,000 PlayStation 3 machines were in time for its debut in Japan. When it goes on sale in the United States on Nov. 17, some 400,000 PS3 consoles will be available there.

The console's European launch has been pushed back until March. That was the second delay, as PS3 had been initially promised for spring of this year.

Sony has a lot riding on the success of the PS3, which is powered by the new “Cell” computer chip and supported by the next-generation Blu-ray video disc format.

But Sony will be losing money for a some time because of the high costs for research and production that went into the highly sophisticated machine.

The red ink is coming at a time when the Japanese electronics and entertainment company, known for the Walkman portable audio player and “Spider-Man” movies, is struggling to stage a comeback.

In recent years, Sony has fallen behind in key products like flat-panel TVs and digital music players. A fumble in its PS3 business could prove a huge blow at a time when it's seeing its brand image badly tarnished by a massive global recall of lithium-ion batteries for laptops.

Canadian firms and charity: Are they scrooges?

2,500 companies to be surveyed
PAUL WALDIE

Canadian companies sure look cheap when it comes to giving money to charities. Businesses rank at the bottom in terms of who gives money to non-profit organizations in Canada, donating less than half as much as individual Canadians.

Now researchers at Imagine Canada, an umbrella organization for the charitable sector, want to find out if companies really are that stingy or if something else is going on. The organization is launching the first-ever study of corporate giving in Canada and it plans to survey 2,500 companies to find out how they make their donations.

"We are trying to understand what they are doing. What sort of issues they are facing? Why they are engaged in the activities they are engaged in?" said Michael Hall, vice-president of research at Imagine Canada.

For example, Mr. Hall said many companies make in-kind gifts, such as used computers, or free up employees to volunteer at events. Those contributions can be difficult to measure in terms of overall donations. "We certainly don't have a good sense of the total amount of corporate giving," he said.

Mr. Hall and his researchers have already started holding meetings with small groups of companies to discuss their charitable donations in detail. Information from those meetings will be used to draw up the survey that will go out next spring. Mr. Hall hopes to have a final report on the study in a year.

The only significant review of charitable giving in Canada was completed in 2004 by Statistics Canada. That study, based largely on tax records from 2003, showed charities reported $112-billion in total revenue. Of that amount, just 3 per cent came from corporate gifts, sponsorships or grants. By comparison, 8 per cent came from donations by individuals.

The study found the largest single source of revenue was government, which accounted for 49 per cent of total revenue. That was followed at 35 per cent by money that charities pulled in from other sources such as investments, membership fees and other charges.

Companies tend to give more money to sports and recreational organizations, as well as cultural groups, the study found. For example, roughly 15 per cent of revenue generated by sports organizations came from corporations while arts organizations drew 8 per cent of their money from businesses.

Nick Offord, a fundraising consultant and former head of Mount Sinai Hospital Foundation in Toronto, said many companies are changing the way they give money.

"More companies are thinking about how they give away money than they did before," Mr. Offord said.

"Companies are trying to be more focused. Instead of trying to be all things to all people, they are having more discipline around priority-setting."

For example, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce has put much of its charitable focus on breast cancer research and sponsors the annual CIBC Run for the Cure. Indigo Books & Music focuses on literacy and AIDS while Bank of Montreal is working with community foundations.

"There are a lot of ways in which companies are engaged in communities that go beyond the straight cash donations," Mr. Offord said.

United Steelworkers back ACTRA

TORONTO (CP) - The United Steelworkers union is backing the organization representing Canadian performers in their negotiations with producers over a new film and television agreement.

The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists has been in contract talks with producers since Oct. 23. Producers are demanding pay cuts of 10 to 25 per cent, among other things, which steelworkers international president Leo W. Gerard called "insulting."

The steelworkers union "will not stand idly by and allow ACTRA's contract to be gutted," he said Monday in a statement.

"Producers should know that picking a fight with ACTRA means picking a fight with us."

The current independent production agreement between ACTRA and producers expires Dec. 31.

ACTRA, which represents about 21,000 members in Canada, signed a strategic alliance with the steelworkers union in April. It includes working together on public policy, organizing, education and mutual support in the case of labour disputes.

In Canada, the United Steelworkers represents more than 280,000 people working in various sectors of the economy.

Copyright © 2006, Canoe Inc

Chinese Foreign Ministry: President Hu to meet Harper at APEC summit

BEIJING (CP) - Chinese President Hu Jintao will meet Prime Minister Stephen Harper during a coming economic summit of Asia-Pacific leaders in Vietnam, an official said Thursday. In a move deemed by many to be a diplomatic snub earlier this week, China abruptly called off a private meeting between the two leaders-apparently because of Canada's criticism of human rights in China, and because of the case of a Chinese-Canadian being held there.

But Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said at a news conference that Hu would meet Harper. However, she added that China rejects any criticism of its human rights situation.

"We oppose any country making irresponsible remarks on the internal affairs of China," Jiang said.

Harper had some harsh words for China while talking to reporters en route to the summit Wednesday.

"I think Canadians want us to promote our trade relations worldwide, and we do that, but I don't think Canadians want us to sell out important Canadian values - our belief in democracy, freedom, human rights," Harper said.

"They don't want us to sell that out to the almighty dollar," he said. "There's always a balance to these things."

Harper said the Chinese took the "unusual" step of "demanding or asking" for a meeting with him during the APEC summit, and Canada agreed.

But a source in Ottawa familiar with the details said China had simply asked whether the Canadian government would be interested in meeting with Hu, a subtle overture that is customary practice with some Asian countries.

Harper and his officials say they were not told explicitly why the Chinese suddenly declined to meet. But the prime minister hinted broadly that Beijing had tried to dictate what sorts of subjects would be raised during their tete-a-tete.

Harper said he wanted to raise human rights and the case of Huseyin Celil, a Chinese-Canadian being imprisoned by China for alleged terrorism links. China does not recognize his Canadian citizenship. Ottawa has been aggressively lobbying for his release.

Hours before Harper made his comments, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay downplayed the importance of the cancelled meeting, expressing confidence the two leaders would be able to meet on the sidelines of the summit.

The Conservative government has had strained relations with China since it took power in January. Canada has awarded honorary Canadian citizenship to Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, and has publicly accused China of commercial espionage.

Ruling party lawmakers have also been vocal critics of religious persecution in China, particularly against members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Canada will not sell out values in exchange for dollars in China: Harper

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (CP) - Canada will not "sell-out" its position on human rights to cash in on trade and investment with China, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Wednesday, firmly putting his government's stamp on relations with the Communist economic powerhouse. Harper's comments, made to reporters while flying to the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum in Vietnam, were some of the most forceful from a Canadian prime minister about China in recent history.

They came as the Chinese government abruptly and pointedly backed away from arranging a private meeting between Harper and Chinese President Hu Jintao when both leaders would be in Hanoi for the APEC summit.

"I think Canadians want us to promote our trade relations worldwide, and we do that, but I don't think Canadians want us to sell out important Canadian values - our belief in democracy, freedom, human rights," Harper said.

"They don't want us to sell that out to the almighty dollar," he said. "There's always a balance to these things."

Hours earlier, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay tried to downplay the controversy, expressing confidence that Harper would still "have the opportunity to see President Hu on the margins of the APEC summit."

Even a quick informal meeting on the sidelines is better than none at all, said Sergio Marchi, head of the Canada-China Business Council and a former Liberal cabinet minister.

"The thing that we need most urgently is that both the prime minister and the president have to get a sense of each other," Marchi said. Then they will be able to discuss "a lot of issues, including sensitive issues and including agreeing to disagree."

Marchi said the failure to arrange the Hu-Harper meeting is "an unfortunate development."

Liberal foreign affairs critic Keith Martin said the snub of Harper by China marks the Conservatives' latest diplomatic blunder.

"Since Day 1, this government has been dismantling Canada's impressive international image by issuing rash and insulting comments about our trading partners and failing to progress on many of our international treaty obligations," Martin said.

Liberal MP Dan McTeague, a former parliamentary secretary for Canadians abroad, said: "It's important that the two countries get together, but it requires a deal of mutual respect which clearly isn't forthcoming from Mr. Harper."

The details of what went awry with the meeting are still murky.

Harper said the Chinese took the "unusual" step of "demanding or asking" for a meeting with him during the APEC summit, and Canada agreed.

But a source in Ottawa familiar with the details said China had simply asked whether the Canadian government would be interested in meeting with Hu, a subtle overture that is customary practice with some Asian countries.

Harper and his officials say they were not told explicitly why the Chinese suddenly declined to meet. But the prime minister hinted broadly that Beijing had tried to dictate what sorts of subjects would be raised during their tete-a-tete.

"All I can say is that the approach we have in international affairs is that we try to build positive and respectful relations, but also frank and open relations, and we don't accept conditions," Harper said.

"We will discuss economic affairs which are obviously of vital interest to Canada-Chinese relations ... At the same time, the government is determined to express its opinions on political issues, human rights concerns and in particular matters that concern Canadian citizens."

Harper was referring to the case of Huseyin Celil, a Chinese-Canadian serving a 15-year prison sentence in China.

Beijing accused Celil of terrorist activities and has not recognized his Canadian citizenship. His family in the Toronto area says he's being persecuted because he is a Muslim from China's Xinjiang region, home to the Uighurs, one of China's largest ethnic minority groups.

"When it comes to general human rights we obviously have an obligation to express our values, but when it comes to the specific case of Canadian citizens who are mistreated, we have an absolute moral obligation to stand by those citizens and express our views," Harper said.

But there have been other irritants since the Conservative government took power last January.

It bestowed the Dalai Lama honorary Canadian citizenship and lashed out at alleged government-sponsored commercial espionage by the Chinese. Even before they defeated the Liberals, Conservatives were harshly critical of human rights abuses in China.

Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other organizations have pressed western leaders to press for better human rights in China and other Asian countries. But the Canadian business community has urged the government to act cautiously when dealing with China, so as not to hurt Canada's trading relationship while other countries reap the windfall.

Harper said he's had no indication that anything has changed on the economic front.

"I haven't seen any evidence that we're unable to do business in China. Our ministers continue to meet regularly with their Chinese counterparts, we've had no unusual difficulties in the economic and trade area," Harper said.

"We have had this peculiar phenomenon where the Chinese are demanding or asking for a meeting and then declining it once it's accepted. It's a pattern that kind of perplexes us."

In Hanoi, MacKay said he has a good relationship with Li Zhaoxing, China's foreign minister, and will meet him on Friday.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

U.S. policy on China heads down a bumpy road

Jonathan Manthorpe
Vancouver Sun

The surge to agenda-controlling power of Nancy Pelosi as House speaker in the United States Congress is being greeted with horror in China and grim foreboding about the impact on Beijing-Washington relations.

Pelosi does indeed have an untarnished record of consistent opposition to any U.S. policy that might give comfort to Beijing.

But the dire predictions being bandied about in China that her elevation presages a chill, and perhaps an ice age, in Sino-US relations, are probably overstated.

Many politicians have come to power in the U.S. in recent years with records of vitriolic opposition to the style and activities of the Communist regime in Beijing -- George W. Bush and Bill Clinton come to mind immediately.

But once they are faced with the reality of policy making and the daily round of decisions, the culture of Washington usually overcomes them. And Washington culture decided many years ago that America's relationship with China will be its most important in the coming decades and is one that must be tended with as much care and consistency as possible.

Even so, it seems inevitable that not only Pelosi's influence, but the Democrats' new ability to bend and frustrate administration policies, means there are likely to be some squeaking springs over the bumps and squealing tires on the corners as the White House and Congress navigate China policy.

There are already mutterings that perhaps a Democrat-dominated Congress with its trade union clientele will bring back legislation to tax Chinese imports as compensation for a perceived fixing of the Chinese currency at an artificially low rate. Canada's experience with softwood lumber shows this possibility is not fanciful.

Official China, in the shape of the official departmental spokesmen and women, have been studiously correct in their responses to last week's U.S. election. When questioned they have replied that the results are entirely an internal U.S. matter and that Beijing has great confidence relations with Washington will continue along the lines of fruitful mutual respect followed in recent years.

But China's media, which these days is perhaps better described as state-overseen rather than state-controlled, has been quick to label Pelosi an arch enemy of China.

Pelosi's history certainly presents plenty of grist for eager journalists to mill. Her political career began representing the then staunchly anti-Communist, pro-Kuomintang Chinatown of San Francisco.

That early, narrow and partial exposure to the complex and subtle world of Chinese politics seems to have marked her attitudes indelibly. Pelosi is a a staunch supporter of Taiwan and fan of Tibet's Dalai Lama.

In 1991 she and two other members of Congress mounted a pro-democracy demonstration in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

"Pelosi is still an out-and-out member of the Taiwan-lovers faction, while at the same time maintaining considerable bias against China," said the Chongqing Morning Post late last week.

A few days earlier, the Shanghai Liberation Daily, using less tabloid language, said "Pelosi takes a tough and critical stance on policy toward China. On important legislation, she has always voted against China."

On Wednesday last week on Sina.com, one of China's most popular Internet sites, Jin Canrong, a specialist on American politics at Beijing's Renmin University, said of the 66-year-old Pelosi: "This old woman has a great bias against China, possibly creating some static in China-U.S. relations."

It is, of course, a consistent problem for outsiders trying to enter into dialogue with modern China that generations of indoctrination have made it very common for Chinese to equate foreigners' distaste for their government with distaste for the entire country and its people. There is no logic in this equation and it will be a mark of China's political coming-of-age when it disappears.

But for the moment Pelosi is being characterized as anti-Chinese rather than anti-Beijing.

The respected national weekly magazine Southern Weekend said in its latest edition Pelosi "consistently opposed Beijing's bid for the Olympics. She opposes increasing America's cultural and scientific exchanges with China, and for 10 years she cast opposing votes on giving China favoured-nation trade status."

"A Congress under Pelosi's leadership," the article continued, "will not only concern itself with China's internal human rights situation but also China's overseas activities with neighbouring countries and Africa."

© The Vancouver Sun 2006

Investing in India can be risky

B.C. securities regulator warns investors of suspicious ploys

Wency Leung
Vancouver Sun
CREDIT: Santosh Verma/Bloomberg News

A Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex index big screen display hangs over the Churchgate suburban railway station in Mumbai, India. As evidenced by a major sell-off this summer, investing in India’s stock markets is not for the faint of heart.

There's no doubt there's money to be made in India, but investing in the emerging market can be risky business.

B.C.'s securities regulator issued an alert last week, warning investors of suspicious ploys in which small companies solicit investments for real estate and infrastructure projects in India.

B.C. Securities Commission spokesman Andrew Poon said these suspicious ploys target the Indo-Canadian community, especially in the Lower Mainland.

Poon said he could not reveal any names or specifics, but said investors need to be wary of schemes that promise substantial returns, as well as companies that seem to be too small to be linked with large real estate and infrastructure projects.

"In general, if you're being approached to invest in a foreign country, do your own research," he said. "You've got to know . . . how is this profit or money going to be generated?"

Poon said that investors typically learn about these schemes through friends, business associates, and other people they know.

He added that those making the pitches often draw on information that is true.

For instance, he said, investors are told that India is experiencing rapid economic growth and that the country requires massive capital investment over the next few decades.

They are also told that some of this investment will come from outside of the country through foreign direct investment, or FDI, and that the Indian government is encouraging investments from people of Indian descent living abroad.

Poon would not say whether anyone had actually been swindled in these ploys, but urged residents to report to the B.C. Securities Commission if they are approached with suspect schemes.

Nizar Assanie, vice-president of research for Vancouver-based IE Market Research Corp., said he suspected Indo-Canadians could be targeted in scams that focus on the real estate sector because of a cultural affinity for bricks-and-mortars investments.

In India, he said, property and infrastructure is usually considered "a lot less risky" than more liquid financial exchanges.

Due to a stigma over debt, India's bond market is not yet well developed, he said.

And as evidenced by a major sell-off earlier this year, investing in India's stock markets is not for the faint of heart either.

Assanie said, however, investors betting on India aren't at any greater risk than those investing in China or in Southeast Asia.

"I think the risks involved in India are as much or as little as any emerging market," he said, adding: "There are a number of legitimate avenues for investors to partake in the opportunity for growth."

India's economy, one of the fastest growing economies in the world, has expanded by an average of more than eight per cent per year for the past three years.

According to a recent report by the Associated Press, the country's industrial production rose 11.4 per cent in September, while manufacturing output grew 12 per cent.

Assanie noted that many investors remain bullish on the country's stock markets, which have rebounded since their early summer correction.

At the Bombay Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange in the country, the Sensex Index hit an all-time high of 13,282.91 points on Friday, compared with its mid-June plunge to 8,929.

Regardless of where they put their money, "investors have to do their due diligence," Assanie said.

Jayant Dubey, vice-president for the State Bank of India (Canada) in Vancouver, said most of his clients in the Indo-Canadian community prefer making their investments in India in real estate development projects, particularly apartments.

Often they do this through remittances to friends or family in India, who invest the money for them, he said.

But Dubey noted that several financial institutions, including his own, offer services that help B.C. investors directly enter India's real estate market.

State Bank of India, for instance, helps clients perform credit checks and review income statements, while staff in India are given the address of the property they are considering to further investigate, he said.

To ensure an investment offer is legitimate, the B.C. Securities Commission also offered the following tips:

- Ask questions and do your own research to make sure you understand the investment and the risks involved.

- Ask for financial statements and verify that information.

- Make sure you understand how the money will be spent on a project.

- Do not rely exclusively on newsletters or materials from the company about a project or the status of investments.

- Check out the background of the people who are selling the investment and assess their claims about business connections and their experience conducting business abroad.

© The Vancouver Sun 2006

China snubs Canada for bilateral meeting at APEC conference in Hanoi

OTTAWA (CP) - Prime Minister Stephen Harper will not have an official meeting with his Chinese counterpart during this week's Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation conference in Vietnam, in an apparent snub by Beijing over the Conservative government's emphasis on human rights. The two countries had been trying to negotiate a bilateral meeting to take place prior to the APEC leaders forum between Harper and President Hu Jintao. Chinese officials said Canada had approached them for a meeting in Hanoi, while Canadian officials said it was the other way around.

But by late Tuesday, a spokeswoman for Harper said there would be no meeting.

"China approached us about a meeting. We said Yes. We have since learned that the meeting offer has now been declined," said Sandra Buckler, Harper's director of communications.

"We remain open to meeting with China at any time - at APEC or anywhere else. We would, however, want a substantive agenda on economic and trade relations and consular cases like Celil."

Celil refers to Huseyin Celil, a Chinese-Canadian held in prison by China for alleged terrorism links. China does not recognize his Canadian citizenship, and his family says he is being persecuted because he is a Muslim. The Conservative government has been aggressively lobbying for his release.

Nobody from the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa was immediately available for comment. A Canadian official said there was still the chance the two leaders could meet in a "pull aside," international forum-speak for an informal chat during the course of the larger conference.

But observers who had been watching the discussion over whether there would be a meeting said the result would provide a significant sign of the state of Canada-China relations. Some, including former ambassador to China Fred Bild, had noted that it was already a sign of Beijing's displeasure that the wavering over the tete-a-tete had gotten out into the media.

Since the Conservatives took power last January, a number of irritants have emerged, including the awarding of honourary Canadian citizenship to Tibet's exiled Dalai Lama, the Celil case, and public accusations by Ottawa of commercial espionage by the Chinese.

And before the Conservatives took power, Tory MPs were among the most vocal critics of religious persecution in China, particularly the treatment of members of the Falun Gong faith.

It has only been in the last month that ministerial outreach has been ramped up with Beijing, including a visit this week by Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn. Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay has been participating in a number of events with embassy officials.

Still, Canadian business leaders have been pressing the Conservative government to reach out to China in order not to hurt future trade ties with the economic powerhouse. At the same time, human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have been trying to remind western countries of the continuing abuses in China and the region.

Harper will have bilateral meetings after he arrives for the conference with leaders from Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand and Korea. Officials said last week that he will bring up the issue of religious freedom with the Vietnamese.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Canada eyes in Pacific pact if global trade talks fail: Emerson

Canadian Press

Hanoi, Vietnam — Trade Minister David Emerson says Canada is interested in exploring the possibility of creating a huge free-trade zone that includes some 20 countries around the Pacific Ocean.

The idea of a free-trade zone stretching from the United States to China, from Australia to Chile, is being talked up at preliminary meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit in the Vietnamese capital.

Mr. Emerson says Canada would still prefer to see a successful outcome in negotiations on a global agreement at the World Trade Organization. But if that fails, Canada needs a Plan B.

The minister says the idea of a Pacific-wide trade zone under APEC is probably the next most attractive arrangement.

Such a trade group could potentially include nearly half of global trade, 40 per cent of the world's population and 56 per cent of its economy.

Bidding wars disappearing in Vancouver

WENDY STUECK
Globe and Mail Update

Vancouver — When Stephen Webber and his wife put their Vancouver-area townhouse up for sale in September, they expected to close a deal within a month.

After several open houses, nearly a dozen private showings and two price cuts, they're still waiting.

“We have been surprised by the lack of activity,” Mr. Webber says. “It seems there is a lot of supply out there. Buyers have more choices. There is not that rush. And there might be hesitation because of what's going on in the States.”

If buyers are not rushing, it may be because they don't have to. The frenzy that characterized the Vancouver housing market since 2004 is disappearing, replaced by one in which buyers have more than mere hours to make a decision. Instead of multiple offers, bidding wars and homes being snapped up virtually overnight, the current market is characterized by growing number of listings, a slower rate of price increases and even price cuts.

Nobody is talking about a crash. Limited land supply, population growth, the 2010 Winter Olympics and a strong regional economy all point to long-term healthy housing demand. But there is a sense the air is leaking out of what had become an overinflated market.

“On the Labour Day weekend, I sold a house in Shaughnessy for $300,000 over listing [price] with 10 offers,” Macdonald Realtors agent Lorne Goldman says.

“Those days are becoming less frequent.”

Some sellers are having to reduce their asking price, Mr. Goldman says, especially if they're fixated on the spectacular returns that defined this market for the past couple of years.

“Up until a month or so ago, most product would sell relatively quickly, in a week or two,” says Marty Pospischil of Dexter Associates Realty. “Now it's not uncommon to have something listed for a month or longer.”

Over the past two months, 15 per cent of sellers have reduced the price of their homes in order to spur a sale, compared with roughly 2 per cent of sellers earlier in the year, says Vic Jang of Sutton West Coast Realty. But the biggest difference he sees is in timing. This summer, clients who waited more than 24 hours to make an offer might find their desired home had already been purchased.

“Now, it's a lot more of ‘Remember that place you saw 10 days ago? Well, it's still there, do you want to see it again?'” Mr. Jang says.

The slowdown could also affect speculative activity, as a slower rate of price growth could make it more difficult to buy, renovate and sell homes for a fat return, Mr. Jang says.

But anybody hoping that prices may come back within reach for first-time buyers is likely to be disappointed. Slowdown or no, Vancouver real estate remains too expensive for many. A search for a single-family, detached home under $600,000 on Vancouver's west side yields three listings, all on land leased from the Musqueam Indian Band. (A fight over lease rates between leaseholders and the band in the 1990s led to a court case and a plunge in market value for homes on band land.) A heritage home in Mount Pleasant is listed at $799,000, despite having suffered a fire last year.

“Affordability is a big issue in Vancouver. And affordability is likely getting worse at a [September] rate of increase of nearly 17 per cent. Because there's very little chance that the income growth will grow at the same rate,” says Craig Alexander, deputy chief economist with TD Economics.

Mr. Alexander, who put Vancouver on a “housing bubble watch” in an August report, says current trends show the market is responding to supply and demand, something he sees as healthy. In a bubble scenario, prices keep climbing at the same rate even as supply grows, he says.

He anticipates the rate of price increases will continue to slow.

“Twelve months from now, I would bet that home price growth in Vancouver would be in the single digits. That's not a terrible outcome, that's a healthy income.”

Rick Valouche, president of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, says the market is becoming more balanced. And this year's total sales are on track to surpass last year's record total, he says.

Some buyers might be sitting on their hands as they assess whether wobbles in the U.S. housing market will affect Vancouver, says Bob Rennie, whose Rennie Marketing Systems sells Lower Mainland condominiums like proverbial hotcakes. U.S. housing prices took their biggest drop in 35 years in September.

But after a few months, those buyers will be back in, Mr. Rennie predicts, driven by factors that include the coming the 2010 Olympics, a shortage of land and the perception of Vancouver as a safe place to invest.

Mr. Rennie is currently selling what he says is the most expensive real estate in Canada: the Fairmont Pacific Estates on the downtown waterfront, where water-facing units are going for about $2,000 a square foot and unit prices range from $1-million to $4.5-million.

His firm also recently sold 40 per cent of the units in a new Burnaby high-rise over a weekend.

“If that's slow, we'll take it all day long,” he says.

Mr. Webber, who works in commercial real estate, is confident he'll sell his house, a nearly new, three-bedroom detached townhouse in waterfront Steveston. And he doesn't sound overly dismayed that he's had to drop the price from an original $679,000 to $659,900, which is still well above what he paid three years ago. He says his home is in a popular neighbourhood, “shows well” in real estate jargon and garners compliments from everyone who walks in the door.

“Every weekend we seem to have someone through the open houses who is really interested, who says ‘you'll be hearing from us,'” says Mr. Webber, who's already purchased a bigger home in another part of the city. “But nothing has happened.”

Ousted P.M. told to stay out of Thailand

Associated Press

BANGKOK, Thailand — Thailand's ousted prime minister should not return home until after elections scheduled to be held a year from now because his reappearance could ignite clashes, the head of the country's post-coup government said Sunday.

Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been living in London, where he owns an apartment, since being deposed by a military coup in September. There have been rumours that Mr. Thaksin might try to slip back into Thailand.

“I think the most appropriate time is after we have a general election and a new government,” said interim Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont, who was appointed by the military after the coup and will remain in office until elections expected in October.

Coup makers have accused Mr. Thaksin of massive corruption and abuse of power. They have set up several anti-graft bodies to investigate alleged wrongdoing by the fallen government.

“We will have to discuss the timing for his return,” Mr. Surayud said during a trip to the northeastern province of Nakorn Rachasima. “If he comes and sparks confrontations among people in the country, would that be appropriate?”

Mr. Thaksin's lawyer said Saturday it was premature to talk of Mr. Thaksin's return in the current political climate.

“If the situation remains the same, he will not return,” lawyer Noppadol Patama told reporters.

South Korea balks at taking new measures against North

JAE-SOON CHANG
Associated Press

SEOUL — South Korea balked Monday at participating in a U.S.-led plan that foresees intercepting North Korean ships suspected of carrying supplies for the regime's nuclear and missile weapons programs.

Seoul, worried that stopping and searching ships could lead to armed clashes with the North, also insisted it is already doing enough to prevent weapons proliferation by Pyongyang, which detonated a nuclear weapon on Oct. 9.

South Korea is finalizing a report on how it would carry out the UN sanctions slapped on North Korea in response to the nuclear test.

Park In-kook, a deputy foreign minister, said Seoul already participated in various regimes to control weapons of mass destruction, and wouldn't formally join the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative, a campaign aimed largely at stopping North Korean weapons traffic by sea.

However, the South will continue a hold on regular humanitarian aid to the North, said Lee Kwan-se, a Unification Ministry official. Seoul suspended the aid in July after North Korea test-launched a series of missiles over international objections.

Mr. Lee also said South Korea will suspend its subsidies for a tourism program at the North's Diamond Mountain resort. Those subsidies are believed to be relatively small and intended simply to fund trips by those — mainly students — who can't afford the expensive, multi-day tours.

South Korea's report to the UN sanctions committee on how it would carry out the resolution unanimously adopted after the North's nuclear test was expected to be submitted Monday.

The resolution bans the sale of major arms to North Korea and calls for inspection of cargo entering and leaving the country. It also calls for the freezing of assets of businesses supplying the North's nuclear and ballistic weapons programs, as well as restrictions on sales of luxury goods, and travel bans on Pyongyang officials.

Mr. Park said Monday that the South would ban travel by those North Korean officials named by the UN committee.

Seoul has participated in the U.S.-led ship interdiction program known as the Proliferation Security Initiative, or PSI, only as an observer.

The two Koreas are still technically at war, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. But their relations have warmed since the first, and only, summit of their leaders in 2000, with Seoul pursuing engagement rather than confrontation under the so-called sunshine policy.

Pope calls for peace in North Korean nuclear crisis

Associated Press

Vatican City — The Vatican is encouraging negotiations to obtain the “denuclearization” of the Korean peninsula, Pope Benedict said Monday.

In a speech to the new Japanese ambassador to the Vatican, the Pope referred to the crisis over North Korea's nuclear program.

“The Holy See encourages bilateral or multilateral negotiations, convinced that the solution must be sought through peaceful means and in respect for agreements taken by all sides to obtain the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula,” he said.

“More than ever, the search for peace among nations must be a priority in international relations,” Pope Benedict said in his speech, delivered in French.

“The crises which the world knows cannot find definitive solutions through violence — on the contrary, they are resolved through peaceful means in respect for agreements.”

The Pope said he “strongly urges the international community to pursue and intensify its humanitarian aid to the most vulnerable populations, notably in North Korea,” which has suffered food shortages in recent years Tensions have been running high in the region since North Korea announced it had conducted a nuclear test explosion on Oct. 9.

South Korea balked Monday at participating in a U.S.-led plan that foresees intercepting North Korean ships suspected of carrying arms cargo as part of sanctions on Pyongyang for conducting the test.

Late last month, North Korea agreed to end an 11-month boycott of international talks with the United States and four neighbours — China, Russia, South Korea and Japan.

Banks dust off the toaster giveaway idea

KEITH MCARTHUR
From Monday's Globe and Mail

The free toaster is back -- with a 21st-century twist.

Banks today are giving away everything from free trips to iPods in an effort to boost market share in the increasingly competitive world of retail banking.

The nineties' focus on long-term brand-building activities led banks to abandon the product giveaway, popularized in the fifties when they passed out toasters and other small appliances to new customers who opened accounts.

But younger consumers are less loyal and unlikely to be swayed by traditional branding techniques, according to Alan Middleton, a marketing professor at York University's Schulich School of Business.

"You've got a new generation coming up that is less susceptible to classical kinds of image strategies and much more prepared to say: 'They're all the same, so I might as well go to the one that gives me something,' " Prof. Middleton said.

Bank of Nova Scotia saw a 300-per-cent increase in the number of new customers opening accounts during its recent "Fly Free" promotion. Customers who opened a Scotia One account received a free round-trip airline ticket.

"I wouldn't necessarily consider it a 'toaster' initiative," said Rick White, the bank's vice-president for brand and marketing programs. "I think it's a lot more sophisticated than that."

The promotion was something of an experiment for Scotiabank, an effort to make a big splash to promote its Scotia One account, which offers unlimited personal banking services for $9.95 a month.

Scotiabank wasn't expecting consumers who were happy with their existing bank to switch for the free flight. Instead, the promotion targeted those who were already looking around.

"There is a lot of churn in the marketplace at any one time. This was about: How do we get people to think about Scotiabank when they're switching banks," Mr. White said.

To qualify for the free flight, consumers either had to have their paycheques deposited directly into the account or use it to make automatic bill payments.

Toronto-Dominion Bank incorporated similar conditions when it gave away iPod shuffles for customers opening new accounts and Nanos for those who also signed up for a TD Gold Visa card.

Dom Mercuri, TD's chief marketing officer, said the conditions are important to protect against "low-value, low-profit relationships," since the price TD pays for the iPods is not heavily discounted. TD also gives away portable DVD players to lure customers into new branches.

Mr. Mercuri said Canada Trust used free product promotions regularly in the eighties, giving away teddy bears and other merchandise. "Those ideas had become a little dormant for some period of time and some of those ideas have been dusted off," he said.

Until recently, most banks favoured draws as the preferred method of promotional marketing. Today, consumers appear to respond better to promotions where everybody wins.

The original toaster giveaway came out of the U.S. in the fifties, when regulated interest rates led banks to look at new ways of differentiating themselves.

Virginia-based Northern Neck State Bank ran a nostalgic, fifties-style marketing campaign last month, where the bank gave away free toasters to consumers opening chequing accounts.

But today's freebies tend to be even more valuable. U.S. banks have given away everything from flat-screen televisions to Sony PlayStations.

In 2004, New York Community Bancorp even gave away free Cadillacs to customers who invested $400,000 (U.S) into a five-year certificate of deposit paying 1-per-cent interest.

Minister Oda accused of conflict over a 2005 fundraiser

The Hill Times
By Abbas Rana and Simon Doyle

Minister's Office says $15,000 fundraiser held before last election was not a conflict

Heritage Minister Bev Oda is being accused of a "conflict of interest" for raising $15,000 at a re-election fundraiser organized by three top broadcasting industry leaders in May 2005, but the Heritage Minister's Office disputes the charge, saying Ms. Oda was at the time an opposition MP.

"I come from a musicians' community. If I want to hold a fundraiser, I might ask a bunch of friends of mine who are musicians, if they will help me out and I might ask people in the arts [community], 'Would you come out because you know me,' and I wouldn't doubt the fact that people in the arts community would go to Bev Oda's fundraisers. The problem is when you have the key issues being decided by the minister, and the key people need to influence that minister who are actually out there selling their tickets for her, that's a conflict," NDP Heritage critic Charlie Angus (Timmins-James Bay, Ont.) said in an interview last week. "When you're the key opposition critic who might become the next minister, and they have your fundraiser in the office of one such industry, that is a conflict," Mr. Angus said.

At issue is a fundraiser organized by John Cassady, president and CEO of Corus Entertainment; Phil Lind, vice-chairman at Rogers Communications Inc.; and Glen O' Farrell, president and CEO of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters. The $250 per-person fundraiser took place on May 24, 2005 at 181 Bay Street in Toronto, the executive head office of Corus Entertainment. The fundraiser was for Ms. Oda's Durham, Ont., riding association.

As well, last week, Mr. Angus released documents showing that Charlotte Bell, vice-president of regulatory affairs at CanWest Global Communications Corp., helped organize a $250 per-person fundraiser in Toronto on Nov. 15 for Ms. Oda. Industry Minister Maxime Bernier (Beauce, Que.) was also invited to speak. Mr. Bernier and Ms. Oda together develop copyright, telecom, and broadcast policies.

Ms. Oda's communications director responded to the documents, saying the event was annual and that the minister was not aware that Ms. Bell was a registered lobbyist and therefore the minister cancelled the event.

Mr. Angus said regarding the 2005 fundraiser, that even as an opposition critic, a Member of Parliament must keep a distance from stakeholders who could lobby in the prospect that the opposition critic becomes a Cabinet minister.

"It smells. It shows that Bev Oda, before she became minister, has a very blurred sense of the distance she must be maintaining as a federal member and [with] a lobbyist," he said.

"The question of hosting a [fundraiser] is a serious question. That's more indicative of the pattern that Bev Oda has established. She's very closely tied to the industry. She's non-existent to arts and heritage community groups and obviously works through the back channels and that's the kind of minister she has been so far. It's very disturbing."

Mr. Angus said since his first election to the House in June 2004, no lobbyist ever organized a fundraiser for him. He however added that prior to the 2006 federal election, an industry stakeholder donated "a couple of hundred dollars" to his riding association.

Meanwhile, Chisolm Pothier, director of communications to Minister Oda (Durham, Ont.) disputed the accusation of a "conflict of interest," saying that in May 2005 nobody knew whether his boss would become a Cabinet minister.

"She could have ended up being the Transportation minister, she could have ended up being the Public Works minister, she could have ended up being a backbench MP, she could have ended up being a defeated Conservative candidate, quite frankly. It's hard to say what she could have ended up being. The fact is, she is probably the most qualified Heritage minister in the history of Canada, given the fact that she has a long-standing career in broadcasting but she could have made a good minister in any number of portfolios," said Mr. Pothier.

He argued that no one needs to donate money or attend a fundraiser in order to gain access to Minister Oda.

"The minister has meetings with all sorts of stakeholders, including critics of this government as well as people who probably like some of our policies because she'll meet with anybody to discuss critical files, like important files that they have concerns about. She does that in the course of her business. Nobody has to buy tickets to anything to have a meeting on an important file with the minister.

"The best example of that is the fact that she met with the Barenaked Ladies [in May 2006] because they have quite clearly articulated concerns about copyright legislation. In fact, simultaneously they may have been out fundraising for the party of Charlie Angus and Jack Layton. They're high-profile NDP supporters and that's good because they're engaged in the political process too and nobody who believes in democracy has any problem with that."

Mr. Cassady and Mr. O'Farrell did not respond to requests for comment but Jan Innes, vice-president of communications for Rogers Communications Inc., said the company had participated in the fundraiser for Ms. Oda in 2005 as well as another in 2004, the year in which Ms. Oda was first elected to Parliament.

"I go to lots of fundraisers and there's always a host, and the host, lots of times, is an individual from the private sector," she said. "The funds go to the riding association but usually there's a committee of people who put together a fundraiser. I mean that's the normal way you do these things."

Ms. Innes said no one from Rogers was hosting this year's event for Ms. Oda, nor was anyone from the company invited. She said the environment has changed with new expectations for government accountability. When asked if the situation is different now that Ms. Oda is a minister, she said: "[that's the] perception, I would imagine." She added: "It's a changing environment and everyone's learning how to deal with these new rules."

John Chenier, co-founder and 16-year editor of The Lobby Monitor, an Ottawa industry publication, said the fundraiser planned for Ms. Oda on Nov. 15 would not have jibed with the government's accountability proposals. "Someone must have seen ethical problems, including the Prime Minister, because he's banned such things, on the corporate side anyway, starting next year," Mr. Chenier said.

The Conservative government's Federal Accountability Act, as proposed by the government, would ban corporate contributions outright and limit individual contributions from the public to $1,000 to a riding association and $1,000 to a political party annually. The bill passed the Senate last week with amendments and is to receive further work again in the House of Commons. Mr. Chenier pointed out that under the current rules, corporations can still donate up to a total of $1,000 annually to individual politicians.

Mr. Chenier said that he finds the timing of the fundraiser interesting because it would have been the last under the changing rules of campaign financing.

"There's probably been, over the course of 10 years, 100 press releases just like this one, about lobbyists organizing fundraising events for people. This is not new," Mr. Chenier said. "But what is interesting about this one is that this is probably the last year that corporations can give to political persons."

Mr. Chenier said that the practice can be something of an embarrassment for a minister if it appears that lobbyists are buying influence with them.

"There was always a sense that there was more personal contact and people were going to these things and people were arranging these things to do more than just give them money," Mr. Chenier said. "So they're giving a fundraiser for Oda. Why did they invite Bernier as well? Well, because they happen to be the two ministers that are on the communications file."

Former Liberal MP Sam Bulte found herself in the centre of a similar controversy during the 2006 election campaign, when it was revealed that principal players in the copyright and communications lobby organized a $250-per-plate fundraiser for Ms. Bulte four days before the election. Ms. Bulte, as former Parliamentary secretary to former Heritage minister Sheila Copps, was widely seen as a candidate for Heritage minister in a potential Liberal government under Paul Martin (LaSalle-Émard, Que.).

Representatives from organizations such as the Canadian Motion Picture Distributors Association and the Canadian Recording Industry Association organized the fundraiser for Ms. Bulte. Such groups are widely regarded as powerful forces in the Canadian copyright lobby.

In the midst of the controversy, Michael Geist, a critic of the Heritage Department and a law professor specializing in e-commerce at the University of Ottawa, posted on his blog that candidates who accept financial contributions from the copyright lobby should not serve as Heritage minister or Parliamentary secretary.

After the election, some observed that the controversy may have tipped the balance in Ms. Bulte's loss to NDP candidate Peggy Nash (Parkdale-High Park, Ont.) by only about 2,000 votes. At the time, Prof. Geist also questioned a number of corporate donations to both Ms. Bulte and Ms. Oda, who were expected to play significant roles in the Heritage portfolios of a Liberal or Conservative government.

"Given that many of the donors did not provide financial support to any other riding association in Canada (with the possible exception of Sam Bulte, whose riding association has yet to file its report), there is little doubt about the motivations behind the decision to back Bev [Oda] at a time when it looked like the Liberals' fall was imminent," Prof. Geist wrote on his blog last June.

Liberal Heritage critic Mauril Bélanger (Ottawa-Vanier, Ont.) told The Hill Times after Question Period last week on the Hill that it was unfortunate that there was a lot of attention placed on the fundraiser held for Ms. Bulte just before the 2006 election, but virtually nothing was said of the fundraiser for Ms. Oda in May of the same year or earlier fundraisers.

He said no one from the telecom or communications lobby has offered such a fundraiser for himself. "If anybody would, I wouldn't accept it," he said. But when later asked to affirm that, he said, "I don't answer theoretical questions."

"If somebody wants to give to me, do I have to go check the lobbyist registry before I accept a donation of $250? No," he said. "Everybody is a lobbyist. When I have people giving me contributions and then try to convince me that there's something that should be done about certain-and-such a thing, they're all lobbyists, they're just not registered lobbyists. That is the ebb and flow of politics. We can't work in a vacuum."

He added that there is higher threshold of ethical care that should be exercised in fundraising for Cabinet ministers.

© 2006 Hill Times Publishing Inc.

MD's Giller-winning book to become TV series

JAMES ADAMS
Globe and Mail Update

It has been a dizzying but remunerative week for Toronto emergency-room doctor Vincent Lam.

Less than 48 hours after his first book, Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures, won Canada's biggest literary award, the $40,000 Scotiabank Giller Prize, it was announced that the book will be made into a TV series for The Movie Network.

Toronto's Shaftesbury Films confirmed yesterday that it had successfully concluded negotiations with Dr. Lam and his agents, Anne McDermid and Shain Jaffe, for the production, which is expected to air in 2008.

The deal was agreed to verbally on Wednesday, less than 24 hours after Dr. Lam, 32, was named the 13th annual Giller winner at a gala ceremony in Toronto. The signing occurred Thursday afternoon.

“I'm thrilled to see that my book has started to take on a life of its own,” Dr. Lam said in a statement yesterday.

Shaftesbury chair Christina Jennings said she started to read the 12 linked short stories in Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures in September, right around the time the book was included among the 15 titles on the Giller Prize nominee list.

“I loved it,” she said in an interview, “and I thought right away there's a series here” — something with which TMN concurred as Shaftesbury's pay-TV broadcast partner. Once Bloodletting was named one of the five short-listed titles in October, discussions began in earnest.

Ms. Jennings described the Lam stories — which follow the lives of four young University of Toronto-trained doctors from their days and nights in medical school to their professional careers in Canada and elsewhere — as “extraordinarily filmic.”

She predicted the series will “be staying pretty true to” Dr. Lam's stories. Moreover, the author will be a consultant for the series and “may even come up with new stuff” as episodes are being drafted.

It has not been decided whether the initial season will feature 8 to 10 episodes or, perhaps, 13.

Chinese choreographer savours creative freedom in Canada

Show mixes modern dance and tai chi

Grania Litwin
CanWest News Services

BRIAN WEBB DANCE COMPANY PRESENTS UNBOUND
Choreographer: Wen Wei Wang
Where: John L. Haar Theatre, 10045 156th St. Edmonton AB

When: Friday and Saturday nights at 8
Tickets: $25 for adults; $15 students and seniors. Tix on the Square, 420-1757

When dancer Wen Wei Wang arrived in Canada for the first time to perform at Expo 86 in Vancouver, he felt like one of the Terra Cotta Warriors, an artifact dug up from around 200 BC in China.

"I felt like a person from thousands of years ago who had been kept underground, who came out and saw a whole new world with blue sky, water, sails flying in the bay.

"I never thought the world could be that beautiful and I fell in love with Vancouver instantly, with the colours, the sights, the freedom. It was a land of my imagination, something I had only seen in cartoon books. I thought, 'My God, this is a real place.' "

The choreographer, who brings his show Unbound to the John L. Haar Theatre tonight as part of the Brian Webb Dance Company season, explains he was psychologically "buried" by the Cultural Revolution in China, starting from age six when he was enlisted in a residential performing arts school.

As a promising youngster, he spent much of his time performing songs and dances "that supported the Mao government's political philosophy."

Considered the best artist at the Red Guard School, Wang was accepted into the famous Army Dance School in Lanzhou at age 13. After an 18-hour train trip to the capital of the North West Territory of China, he learned that classes began at 6 a.m. and the day ended at 10:30 p.m. -- and jammed between were jumps, turns, special tricks, ballet, folk dancing and classical Chinese dancing as well as the study of language, history and politics.

For four years, until his graduation in 1982, there were no summer breaks and no visits home. The pressure was immense, especially during one three-month period when the kids did military drills and learned to fire guns.

"I grew up believing in the wisdom of Mao and always wanted to wear a uniform," the chuckling Wang recalls in an interview from Vancouver.

But then, as principal artist with the Lanzhou Army Dance Company, he was invited on a five-month cultural exchange to Vancouver. "I quickly had my eyes opened and when I left Vancouver, I was a changed person. Mao was no longer a god, and I remember wishing on the plane that I did not have to return to China."

Back home he and his dance partner took first place in a big competition, and won a television set worth more than a year's salary. During the riots in Tiananmen Square, he was battling through a massive two-day audition to enter university and take a degree in choreography. He passed and joined outstanding students from all over China, stars in their own companies, winners of prestigious competitions -- but his goal was to study and work in Vancouver.

Finally, he arrived in 1991 and for the next 12 years Wang worked as a professional dancer, teacher and choreographer, and in 2003 formed Wen Wei Dance. His current show features three men and three women, including himself, and is a work of neither "real western modern dance, or real classic Chinese dance. It is something I've learned and mixed."

It was inspired by a pair of "lotus" shoes which have three-inch heels and are designed to push the foot forward and make it look very small. (For 1,000 years in China, women's beauty was judged by the size of their feet. Three inches long was considered ideal, like a lotus bud.)

"The shoes tell the story and give the dance its feeling. I like how the shoe looks, the way a woman must stand and move completely differently in it, and from that we built the dance using some classic Chinese movement, some tai chi, some very sharp fast movement and some very loose."

Wang still returns to China, but prefers the creative freedom of living in Canada.

"In China we think we are artists, but we are not. We are servants for the communist party; our duty is to serve the government or the people. Here you have your own freedom, your own experience, you can see the work with your own eye. Before, all I saw was the communist colour red."

Victoria Times Colonist

© The Edmonton Journal 2006

Experience aside, Watanabe needed research for Japanese role in Eastwood film

HONOLULU (AP) - Having starred in several TV series and films about samurai, Ken Watanabe understands sacrifice, honour and fierce battles to the death. So playing a Japanese general in a film about the bloody Battle of Iwo Jima would appear to be a seamless transition. Not so, Watanabe says. His role in Clint Eastwood's Second World War epic "Letters From Iwo Jima," took lots of preparation and research.

The film, scheduled for release Dec. 9 in Japan and early next year in the United States, is a companion to Eastwood's current Iwo Jima film, "Flags of Our Fathers." "Letters," though, is told from the perspective of Japanese soldiers defending the island.

Watanabe, 47, said many Japanese, including the young actors in the film, weren't aware of the sentiment of the soldiers decades ago. He read books to study the battle, as well as the culture, attitudes and traditional language of that generation.

While Watanabe was well aware of Eastwood's abilities, he had concerns about an American directing a film from the Japanese vantage point.

"I was worried before shooting," Watanabe said in an interview with The Associated Press on Waikiki Beach. "We wanted to explain and express the Japanese feeling 60 years ago. He totally understood. We completely had good chemistry."

Watanabe plays Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi, who loses the battle for control of Iwo Jima.

"Letters from Iwo Jima" is Watanabe's fourth Hollywood film in the past few years. Watanabe also starred in "Last Samurai," "Batman Begins" and "Memoirs of a Geisha." In 2004, he was featured as one of People magazine's 50 most beautiful people.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

World Poetry Reading Series

November 27th, 2006
Vancouver Public Library (Central branch) 7:30 pm
Alma Van Dusen Room.

Free event
Hosts: Ariadne Sawyer and Alejandro Mujica-Olea.

Ola Tawose, published poet who grew up in Nigeria and encountered the wonder and beauty of storytelling while living there. She currently works in the Broadcasting industry and has the joy of promoting the cause of worthy events. Her poetry reflects “joy of finding and having a voice and the importance of “ arting to live a life” that she has chosen.

Ahn Bong Ja, a South Korean-Canadian poet and essayist. She is the author of The Blue Winged Fish, and one of the co-hosts of World Poets’ Night Out. Ahn Bong Ja is launching her new book: Because I Heard You Coming, containing her love for nature and of human hearts. Her poems and essays appear frequently in the local Korean news publications.

Anthony Dalton, in the 1970s and ‘80s Anthony Dalton was an explorer and expedition leader. Since then he has been a full-time freelance writer and photographer. He is the author of non-fiction books and hundreds of illustrated magazine articles. His latest book is BAYCHIMO, Arctic Ghost Ship. Dalton is the President of the Vancouver branch of the Canadian Authors Association.

Diego Bastianutti, born in Fiume under Fascism, he immigrated to North America in 1952. He retired to Vancouver after a 30- year university career. He has three volumes of poetry: Il punto caduto, La barca in secco, Per un pugno di terra / For a Fistful of Soil, plus A Major Selection of the Poetry of Giuseppe Ungaretti, Exile Editions, 1997, ( Canadian 1998 John Glassco Prize)

Warren Stevenson, critic and poet, has been an Associate Professor of English at UBC, retired in 1998, and has also taught in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. He will be presenting his new revised book: Infernal/Supernal Love by MBooks. Other poetry books are Serpent Upon A Rock (Ekstatis) and Serpent Humanized (Lewiston: Melen Press)

Musician: Andy Vine began performing in folk clubs in his native UK during the ‘60s folk revival and has never “hung up his guitar”. Lately Andy’s writing has taken a political turn with songs like “New American Century” taking humorous but pointed digs at familiar targets. His Woman of Labrador” is included in the album by “Figgy Duff”. www.andyvine.com

For more information: Ariadne Sawyer, 604-526-4729 or ariadnes@uniserve.com

Cash-strapped Indian city hires eunuchs to help collect overdue taxes

PATNA, India (AP) - One cash-strapped Indian city has launched a unique collection service to dislodge payment from tax deadbeats: Door-to-door eunuchs. Eunuchs, or men who lack external genitalia, are regarded as powerless in India and traditionally make a living on tips for dancing at weddings or blessing newborns. But they are also known for extreme stubbornness and Patna, the capital of Bihar state in eastern India, hired scores of them Wednesday to compel shop owners to pay their tax arrears.

"We are confident that their reputation and persuasive skills will come in handy for the municipal authorities to collect taxes from defaulters," said Bharat Sharma, a revenue officer.

Only 2,000 of nearly half a million people have been paying property tax and water supply charges to Patna's municipal authorities, and tax collection is less than one-third of a projected tax base of the equivalent of about (US)$15 million, said Atul Prasad, the municipal administrator.

Dancing and singing to the beat of drums and wearing bright saris, the eunuchs met with success in their new role Wednesday. They collected about $9,000 in cash and checks from shop owners in the city, Sharma told The Associated Press.

Revenue officials accompany the eunuchs with records to settle the outstanding dues on the spot. The eunuchs get 4 per cent of what they collect from defaulters.

The eunuchs would be asked to help collect outstanding taxes from private homes soon, Prasad said.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Lisa Nakajima - At home on ice, at keyboard

By Jennifer Miller
Reporter / Whistler Question
jmiller@whistlerquestion.com

Young Whistlerite tops B.C. and Yukon on Royal Conservatory piano exam

Many Whistlerites know Lisa Nakajima for her award-winning figure skating skills, but the local girl is also beginning to make a name for herself in the musical world. The 11-year-old recently was informed that she had achieved the highest score in B.C. and the Yukon on her Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) piano exam earlier this year.

Nakajima received an almost unheard-of score of 97 out of 100 on her grade 5 piano exam in June and will be awarded a silver medal at a ceremony in Vancouver on Nov. 18. The silver medal is awarded to the student with the highest score in each grade of the RCM.

“I didn’t really know it at first,” Nakajima said of receiving the letter a few weeks ago informing her about the medal. “I was kind of surprised. I didn’t know there were awards like that. I was happy.”

Nakajima’s talent and ease at the piano are evident as soon as her fingers touch the keys and she effortlessly plays from memory a new piece she is working on. She said she likes to play classical music, with composers such as Mozart and Clementi named as favourites.

“It amuses me and I just enjoy it,” she said. “It’s my second favourite thing I like to do other than skating, so I hope I can go far with it, too.”
She has goals to become a professional performer and also teach piano in the future, she said.

It’s a wonder she can find the time for piano with a figure skating schedule that sees her at the rink almost every day, but Nakajima makes time for weekly lessons and practicing, and even has time left over for playing with her friends. She’s also in French immersion at school.

The Grade 6 student began her piano lessons at the Whistler Music School of Excellence with teacher Jana Marie Dupuis when she was only five, and has continued lessons with Dupuis ever since.

“I knew she was very talented from the moment she started. You just know,” Dupuis said. “I’ve never pushed her, she’s never really pushed herself, yet every single year she gets better at practicing and has fun. She enjoys it.”

Nakajima is now studying RCM grade 6 piano and grade 2 theory. She also helps Dupuis with weekly group music classes for five-year-old children and their parents.

Tiger Woods' winning streak ends; Yang wins HSBC Champions

SHANGHAI, China (AP) - Tiger Woods' streak is over. Woods failed to win a 72-hole tournament for the first time since July 9, finishing two shots behind Yang Yong-eun in the HSBC Champions on Sunday.

Yang, a regular on the Japanese tour who has played infrequently outside Asia, closed with a 3-under 69 Sunday for a 14-under 274 and a two stroke victory over Woods at the HSBC Champions tournament. Yang won US$833,000.

The loss ended Woods's streak of stroke-play victories, dating to his runner-up finish to Trevor Immelman on July 9 in the Western Open.

The only streak that remains for Woods is his six straight victories on the PGA Tour. The HSBC Champions is sanctioned by the Asian, Australasian, South African and European tours, and it was the first official tournament of the 2007 season in Europe.

Woods' overall winning streak ended at the HSBC World Match Play Championship at Wentworth in September when he was eliminated in the first round.

Woods started the final round five shots behind and never really threatened to overtake Yang. Woods birdied the 14th, 16th and 18th holes, making a four-footer on the final hole. He said his 73 on Saturday in cold, blustery conditions cost him a good run at the title in Asia's richest tournament.

"I wasn't quite good enough," Woods said. "Yesterday just killed me. I was so far back and Yang just played a great stretch of holes and just put it out of reach for all of us that were 6 or 7 under trying to make a run at him."

Third-round leader Retief Goosen hit his approach on 18 in the water, part of a horrendous back nine when he shot 39 en route to a 1-over 73 and a total of 11 under. He was tied for third with New Zealand's Michael Campbell, who matched the course record with a 64.

Yang started the day at 11-under par, one behind overnight leader Goosen, but took a three-shot lead with seven holes to play. He said he got nervous after a bogey at the 16th, but felt confident when he reached the green on the 18th after watching Goosen hit into the water.

"It's just such a big moment in my life right now I can't explain it in words," Yang said. "Now that I've won, I want to play a lot of tournaments overseas - in Europe, the United States and Japan. I want to compete against the best in the world, now this gives me the chance."

Campbell, the 2005 U.S. Open champion, had a terrible third round, making 10 bogeys in a 77. But he improved on that score by 13 strokes Sunday, making five birdies on the front nine and three on the back.

He shares the course record with Woods and Henrik Stenson, who both had 64s on Friday.

Scotland's Marc Warren finished fifth at 10 under, followed by European No. 1 Padraig Harrington, Robert Karlsson and Paul Casey at 8 under.

Second-ranked Jim Furyk closed with a 68 and finished at seven under in a share of ninth with K.J. Choi, Johan Edfors, Italy's Francesco Molinari and India's Jyoti Randhawa.

Woods said the form he showed in the second round was verging on what is was before his five-week break.

He was followed by a packed gallery, buzzing with excitement on almost every shot.

"I wish I could have made a few more birdies and made it more exciting for them," said Woods. "We challenged for a win, but it wasn't the case."

The 30-year-old American took on the course from the start, trying to make up ground.

He used a wood to hit out of a bunker hoping to hit the green in two on the par-five second hole. He landed it just on the verge of the green, but had to settle for par.

He also narrowly missed a birdie putt at the par-three fifth, where the distractions of a cackle of gunfire from an automatic weapon and a bugle salute from an adjoining army base brought a smile to his face.

It was a missed putt for eagle at the par-five 14th ended his challenge, Woods said.

"It was a momentum blower," said Woods, who admitted he did not know anything about Yang until now.

"I was just trying to make as many birdies as I can and maybe get second," Woods said. "If I could shoot 30 on the back nine somehow, I thought maybe I could get into a playoff at best. It didn't happen."

Yang has won four times on the Japanese tour and won his first Asian Tour event earlier this year in a Korean Open field containing Goosen.

Yang will play the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan next week, where Woods will attempt to defend his 2005 title.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Queer and Alliance Desi Arts

South Asian Artist Showcase

Friday Nov 17th, doors @ 6pm
Scotiabank Dance Centre (677 Davie @ Granville)
15$-25$
Tix at Little Sister's
http://www.myspace.com/melana_arts

A showcase of young local South Asian artists, 'shining light on the diversity in the queer and South Asian communities'. Lots of great acts, come support this local talent! There's also an afterparty at Lick

Pandit Vithal Rao

The Alliance Française de Vancouver is proud to announce the first Vancouver appearance of one of the grand masters of Indian vocal tradition Pandit Vithal Rao
presented by Juno Award-winning singer Kiran Ahluwalia,

8 p.m. Thursday, November 16, at the Roundhouse Community Centre
181 Roundhouse Mews, Yaletown, Vancouver.

Juno Award-winning singer Kiran Ahluwalia presents an evening of exquisite Indian vocal music, featuring her guru Pandit Vithal Rao, a grand master of the ghazal, romantic poems set to music.

Born in 1930, Vithal Rao spent his early years as a court musician in the palace of the last prince of Hyderabad. Kiran will act as host, sing a duet or two with her teacher, and lead a Q &A session after the performance. She will also tell stories from the extraordinary and colourful life of Vithal Rao, one of the jewels in the crown of Indian culture, who is visiting Canada for the first time in 32 years.

Tickets $22 in advance ($25 at door):
Banyen Books, Sophia Books, Zulu, Highlife, and Alliance Française.
Also by phone at 604 231 7535 or online at www.ticketstonight.ca.

More info at www.kiranmusic.com

Vancouver performers abuzz over latest theatrical undertaking

CBC Arts

A converted funeral home is the location of an ambitious theatrical project launching in Vancouver Thursday, as almost a dozen simultaneous shows open under one roof.

The project, called Hive, is the work of 11 theatrical companies from the Vancouver area.

Each company will perform in its own cell, each of which is connected to a central cafe and bar. None of the performances is longer than 10 minutes and each cell holds only 20 people.

Adrienne Wong of neworldtheatre said the project, which runs from Thursday to Saturday, has been in the planning stages for a year and a half.

But difficulties in finding a date all the companies could agree on stalled the process, which she says is a sign of Vancouver's thriving theatre scene.

"This is a way for all those different theatre practices and methodologies to come together under one roof," she told the CBC.

The performers include the Electric Company, which has won awards for its popular stage shows Score! and Brilliant!, and outdoor theatre troupe Boca del Lupo and Rumble, which has done six short films for Bravo! television.

Also performing are Felix Culpa, Leaky Heaven Circus, neworldtheatre, The Only Animal, Radix, Theatre Replacement, Theatre SKAM and Western Theatre Conspiracy.

Performances range from Samuel Beckett plays to dinner theatre to a recreation of the Trojan war using action figures, with a Barbie doll as Helen of Troy and Eeyore the donkey as the Trojan Horse.

Some are using the unique location as part of their inspiration, as Wong's company has enhanced their location — the embalming room — with telltale props.

"We have a whole bunch of medical charts, oh, and a flyswatter," she said.

The performances run from 7 to 10 p.m.

Long lines greet debut of Sony's PlayStation 3 at Japanese stores

TOKYO (AP) - Sony's PlayStation 3 made its highly anticipated debut in Japan to long lines on Saturday, marking the first launch of the video game console that's expected to become a global sellout. Throngs of people lined up for hours around Bic Camera, an electronics retailer in downtown Tokyo, to get their hands on one of the consoles. The enthusiasm was so great, clerks with megaphones asked the crowd to stop pushing, warning that all sales would end if there were any injuries.

"Standing in line today is the only way to make sure I got one," said Takayuki Sato, 30, among the buyers who queued up at Bic Camera, snaking around the building in a complete circle.

But would-be buyers were turned away even before the store opened at 7 a.m. The retailer refused to say how many machines it had, but said it knew it would sell out based on the length of the line around the building.

Short supplies were reported elsewhere, too. Sanae Saito, a clerk at Yodobashi Camera Co. chain, said her store's stock had already sold out, although she declined to say how many machines were available.

"It's all sold out with the people in line now," she said. "So many people waited in line."

Plagued with production problems, Sony Corp. has managed to ready only 100,000 PlayStation 3 machines in time for its debut in Japan. When it goes on sale in the United States on Nov. 17, some 400,000 PS3 consoles will be available there. The console's European launch has been pushed back until March.

It was not immediately clear whether the console sold out at all retailers, and Sony said that information would not be available for several days.

Ken Kutaragi, the head of Sony's game unit known as the "father of the PlayStation," said he was thrilled by the reception to the PS3.

"I am so happy so many people are waiting," he said in an informal countdown ceremony at Bic Camera. "Thank you for waiting from late last night. Please enjoy next-generation entertainment."

Powered by the new "Cell" computer chip and supported by the next-generation Blu-ray video disc format, the console delivers nearly movie-like graphics and a realistic gaming experience.

Sony will be losing money for a some time on each PS3 sold because of the high costs for research and production that went into the highly sophisticated machine.

Game makers, including Sony, must recoup the exorbitant development costs for the machines by selling software, and programming the PS3's cutting-edge hardware is an expensive and time-consuming task. Only five games were on sale for the PS3's Japan launch date.

Sony expects to lose $1.7 billion in its gaming division in the fiscal year through March 2007.

The red ink is coming at a time when the Japanese electronics and entertainment company, known for the Walkman portable audio player and "Spider-Man" movies, is struggling to stage a comeback.

In recent years, Sony has fallen behind in key products like flat-panel TVs and digital music players. But it has been making progress with a two-year revival by getting back to basics in its consumer electronics operations.

But a major fumble in its PS3 business could prove a huge blow at a time when it's seeing its brand image badly tarnished by a massive global recall of lithium-ion batteries for laptops.

In an unprecedented move, Sony slashed the price for the cheaper PS3 model in Japan ahead of its launch by 20 per cent to about US$420 in what some critics have scorned as a desperate effort to maintain market share in the face of intense competition with Nintendo Co.'s Wii console and Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360.

Wii goes on sale Nov. 19 in the U.S. and Dec. 2 in Japan. The Xbox 360 has had a year start.

Prices vary by retailer, but the more expensive model, with a 60-gigabyte drive, sells in Japan for about US$510.

"It's a bit expensive, but I really wanted it," said Hirotoshi Iwadate, a 23-year-old hospital worker, clutching a big bag with his new PS3 after standing in line since 10 p.m. Friday. "I came here straight from work."

The PS3 was initially promised for worldwide sales for spring this year but was postponed in March to November. In September, the European sales date was delayed by another four months.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Harper's first trip to Asia will put spotlight on relations with China

OTTAWA (CP) - The Conservative government's ambiguous relationship with China will be under the microscope this week when Prime Minister Stephen Harper makes his first major trip to Asia. Harper will be meeting in Hanoi with the other 20 leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation Forum, an organization that typically focuses on trade and global security issues.

But it is Harper's foreign policy approach on two massive issues - Canada's dealings with China and its potential role in quelling tensions with North Korea - that will likely garner the most attention back home.

Discussions have been under way to try to arrange a bilateral meeting between Harper and Chinese President Hu Jintao. But some observers found it significant that, only days before the kick-off of the forum, no meeting had been confirmed yet.

"That's actually quite serious, because that means the Chinese want to tell us they're annoyed," said Michael Byers, the Canada Research Chair in global politics and international law at the University of British Columbia.

"For them to be delaying confirmation of a meeting between the world's eighth largest economy and one of their most important sources of raw natural resources is an indication Mr. Harper has some work to do."

Since the Conservatives took office in January, there have been a number of irritants in the Canada-China relationship.

Among them were moves to bestow the Dalai Lama with honourary Canadian citizenship and public complaints about corporate espionage by Chinese agents in Canada. There have also been few official contacts between Chinese and Canadian diplomats or politicians in recent months.

Harper's parliamentary secretary, Jason Kenney, has long been a critic of China's poor human rights record, something that observers say would have been duly noted by the Chinese government.

Fred Bild, who was Canadian ambassador to China from 1990 to 1995, said he suspects the Conservative government has simply not come up with a policy on China yet - at its own peril.

"You have to have a strategy to deal with China, you can't just deal with it as if it were Liechtenstein or something," said Bild, now a professor of Asian studies at the University of Montreal.

"When there's pressure on . . . they run scared and don't know what to do, and in some ways it makes it worse. I pity my successors in Beijing and in Ottawa who have to deal with these issues, because this is the worst possible circumstance in which to operate, when you don't have a clear direction from the top."

Bild notes that the number of Chinese tourists and students coming to Canada has dropped precipitously in recent years.

All this has alarmed many in the business community, who fear Canada will be left behind in reaping some of the potential trade and investment rewards of tapping into an economic powerhouse.

"Definitely as a country we need to be putting a lot more resources into our emerging markets strategy," said Shirley-Ann George, vice-president of international issues for the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.

"We need a cohesive strategy that involves the provinces, we need more feet on the ground, more experts on the ground in places like China and India. Other countries are having better, more resourced strategies than Canada, and every day that they move further ahead we move further behind."

The North Korea nuclear issue will be the focus of most international attention at the meeting of APEC leaders, since five of the countries involved in talks with Pyongyang will be present.

Canada is not one of those nations, but Wade Huntley of the Liu Centre for Global Issues in Vancouver says Ottawa can play an important diplomatic role by simply keeping the pressure on for action.

He noted that, while the international community springs to action in the wake of any fresh nuclear scare, attention drifts when things are quiet.

"One of the most important things that Canada and a number of other countries could do is make sure that the issue stays on the agenda of the principal countries of the six-party talks, and that those six countries never forget that the rest of the world is watching," said Huntley.

The APEC leaders will also be discussing economic issues, particularly the fate of the World Trade Organization's troubled talks on trade liberalization. In the meantime, the U.S. government has suggested that it would like to pursue a discussion on a free-trade zone among all APEC members.

Canadian officials have suggested there is interest in that concept in Ottawa too.

"Certainly there are different views with regard to it, but many like-minded economies like ourselves want to look at all options with regard to trade liberalization," said one official.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

India's industrial output rises 11.4% in Sept. on export surge, domestic demand

NEW DELHI (AP) - India's industrial production rose 11.4 per cent in September, boosting growth for the first half of the fiscal year to 10.9 per cent, the government said Friday in a report that indicated momentum is building in the economy. India has averaged 8.1 per cent annual economic growth over the past three years, making it one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.

The growth in industrial production in September came amid sustained domestic demand and a surge in exports, despite rising oil prices that added to inflation and prompted banks to raise interest rates.

Among industries, manufacturing output grew 12 per cent in September compared with 8.9 per cent in the same month a year ago. Mining production expanded 3.9 per cent in September from last year, while electricity generation was up 11.4 per cent.

The growth numbers beat expectations of analysts, who had projected industrial output to expand at a rate of nearly 10 per cent in September.

Still, some experts said industrial activity could slow in coming months.

A moderation in external demand and rising interest rates could depress growth numbers in the remaining quarters despite an increase in investment spending, said Rajeev Malik, a JP Morgan economist based in Singapore. Consumer spending may also soften, Malik said.

The acceleration during the April-September period was driven by both a surge in exports as well as domestic demand.

Rising middle class incomes have boosted consumer spending on goods such as cars, phones and television sets and encouraged companies to invest in new projects.

Car sales, example, increased 23 per cent in the first half of the current year, while India overtook China in September in adding new mobile phone subscribers - a record six million in that month.

Indian companies are also becoming increasingly competitive in the global market. Exports totalled US$59.3 billion, up 23 per cent on year.

The growth in industrial output, coupled with prospects of a good agricultural harvest because of timely rains, will likely help the broader economy maintain the momentum seen in recent years.

Last month, India's central bank raised its economic growth forecast to eight per cent from an earlier projection of 7.5 per cent.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Paper use soars despite digital advances: Statistics Canada

CBC News

A new report by Statistics Canada puts to rest predictions that the paperless office would be a 21st-century reality, finding instead that paper consumption has doubled over 20 years.

The surge in paper use for printing and writing alone between 1983 and 2003 was accompanied by a dramatic increase in the use of communication technologies such as the telephone and e-mail, the study released Friday found.

The report, titled "Our lives in digital times," found that traditional retail businesses have nothing to fear from e-commerce. Although online sales quadrupled between 2001 and 2004, that increase still represents just one per cent of total retail sales. During the same period the number of retailers, their employees and the amount of retail space rose in Canada.

The study also found that business travel appears to have increased alongside the popularization of internet and videoconferencing technology.

Russia, China plan joint space projects

The Associated Press

Russia plans to co-operate with China to launch robotic missions to the moon and Mars, and the pair will pursue a number of other space projects, officials said Thursday.

"We have switched from co-operating on technological elements and devices to developing big scientific projects in space research," Yuri Nosenko, a deputy head of Russia's Federal Space Agency, told reporters in a televised hookup from Beijing, where he and other officials were attending a Russian national exhibition.

He said the space-related contracts Russian companies had signed with China were worth tens of millions of dollars.

Nosenko said Russia had agreed to help China in its lunar research program and China would also take part in Russia's project of sending an unmanned probe to Mars's moon, Phobos, to take soil samples and deliver them back to Earth.

China will build a mini-satellite that would be carried by the Russian probe and released in the vicinity of Mars to conduct research, said Georgy Polishchuk, head of the NPO Lavochkin company, which is working on the mission. It is set to launch in 2009.

Polishchuk said China also had expressed interest in joining a later robotic mission expected to land on Mars.

Nosenko wouldn't elaborate on specific details of the moon and Mars projects or say how much they would cost.

Nikolai Testoyedov, head of the NPO Reshetnev state-controlled company that built satellites for Russia's GLONASS global-positioning system, said he expects China to co-operate with Russia in the field.

Russia sold China the technology that formed the basis of its manned space program, which launched its first astronaut in 2003 and two others in 2005. The Chinese Shenzhou spacecraft closely resembles the Russian Soyuz.

The next Chinese manned space flight is due next year. Officials say they also want to send up a space station and land a robot probe on the moon by 2010.

While hailing the bilateral co-operation with China, Nosenko has scoffed at media allegations that China's Shenzhou spacecraft could replace Russia's Soyuz to ferry crews to the international space station.

"We are glad to see the successes of our Chinese colleagues, but it would be extremely difficult to achieve that," he said, adding that Soyuz boasts an excellent safety record that has taken decades to build.

Ontario moves to boost recognition of foreign credentials

(CBC) - Regulatory associations may soon be fined up to $100,000 if they don't fairly recognize the credentials of foreign doctors, engineers, accountants and other professionals, Ontario's immigration minister said Wednesday.

Mike Colle was speaking in Ottawa one of several forums across the province on Bill 124, the Fair Access to Regulated Professions Act, which is aimed at helping immigrants find jobs in the province within 34 regulated professions.

Premier Dalton McGuinty's Liberal government announced Bill 124 on June 8. It has now passed its second reading, and will be the subject of committee meetings next week prior to its third and final reading in the legislature.

According to the Ontario immigration ministry, up to 140,000 newcomers move to the province every year.

Colle told the 100 people attending the Ottawa forum that Ontario residents don't want to see those newcomers' brains go to waste.

"Let's make it possible for these people to work in their fields," Colle said, "and then we'll have a gain for the foreign-trained individuals but also for all the communities that need engineers, doctors, nurses."

Renaud Arnaud, who immigrated to Canada from France five years earlier, was one person in the audience who thinks the bill is a good idea.

"When I arrived in Canada, I thought it would be easy for me to find a job, having a master of engineering and an MBA," he said.

Despite his academic credentials and experience working for General Electric in the United States, Renaud said he was never able to find a job in his field.

Instead, he worked at a supermarket, taught French to public servants and is now completing an internship at the University of Ottawa, where he is training to become a technology transfer officer.

According to the Conference Board of Canada, failure to recognize foreign skills and credentials costs the Canadian economy up to $5 billion a year.

If it passes its third and final reading, the bill will give the provincial government the power to:

- Oversee and set provincial standards for the process of accrediting foreigners in 34 registered professions in Ontario.

- Appoint a fairness commissioner to enforce its standards.

- Fine individuals up to $50,000 and corporations $100,000 for not complying.

- Set up an access centre to provide information, internships and mentorships for immigrants.

© the CBC, 2006

WANTED: Nominations to appear on TV show

I will be directing a TV series commissioned by Singapore broadcaster ChannelNews Asia on ‘Asian trans-nationals’. These are South, Southeast, or East Asians who have migrated outside of Asia as an adult, having had successful careers in their native countries. Now living in their adopted countries, they are architects, doctors, scientists, musicians, politicians, and business people.

I am looking for people whom I can feature in the show and with whom I can explore issues such as the reasons why they left (social, political and creative factors?) and what it means to be living and practicing their professions in a post-modern, globalize and transnational world. Pico Iyer had examined this phenomenon in his book The Global Soul.

The show will span the world, but the initial four episodes will be based in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Vancouver, and Toronto. Examples from Toronto include: Hong Kong-born chef Susur Lee (recently appeared in Iron Chef America), Bombay-born writer Rohinton Mistry (his novel A Fine Balance was nominated for the Man Booker Prize), China-trained ballerina Xiao Nan Yu (principal dancer at the National Ballet of Canada).

Other examples around the world could be actress Joan Chen in Los Angeles, filmmaker Clara Law in Australia, a Japanese fashion designer in Paris, a South Asian entrepreneur in London, a Singaporean video game designer in New Zealand. Expatriates like filmmaker John Woo (working in Hollywood), designer Rei Kawakubo (Comme des Garçons in Paris) or businessman Victor Li (Li Ka-shing’s son) do not qualify as, although they work outside Asia, they still live and operate out of their native country.

Please e-mail me at ckwan@tissa.com with your nominations (and their contact information, if possible). Please feel free to pass this e-mail around.

Cheuk Kwan
Director, Chinese Restaurants
www.ChineseRestaurants.tv

Jeng Yi Korean Drum and Dance Ensemble

Presents “Opaque” New Works At 5th Annual Performance

Friday November 17 & Saturday November 18, 2006, 8:00p.m.,

Harbourfront Centre’s Lakeside Terrace,
235 Queens Quay West, Toronto ON

Jeng Yi’s performances are always more than a music recital; the all-male drum and dance ensemble presents music, dance, and ceremony together, just like at the shaman and court rituals of Korea.

Every year since 2002, Jeng Yi has presented in spacious halls with proscenium stages. Charles Hong, Artistic Director of Jeng Yi, has selected the charming Lakeside Terrace with its scenic surroundings for the location of its first “site-specific” performance of new works and Jeng Yi favourites adapted for small spaces and stages.

In addition to a collection of shaman rhythms for Korean percussion and some established favourites redesigned for small spaces and stages, such as the much-talked-about ribbon hat dance, new works to be presented at Opaque: Shaman Rhythms and Works for Small Spaces & Stages include:

Taepyongmu, literally The Grand Peace Dance, is a neo-traditional dance genre that has become a standard in the Korean dance canon in the last few decades. The dance employs the rhythms of shaman music and the stately movements of court dances, and features elaborate costumes and head dress. Jeng
Yi will be performing on Korean drums, with the JM Dance Collective.

Viola Sinawi is new musical work inspired by the Shaman music of the Cholla province in the southwestern region of the Korean peninsula. Sinawi is a semi-improvised piece that usually accompanies a shaman dancer. Viola Sinawi will be performed on the Kayagum (12-string zither), Janggo (Hourglass Drum) and the Viola. The piece will feature 2 movements, a slower 12/8 movement followed by a more robust 12/8 movement.

Kangwon is a new Jeng Yi piece that features Kayagum and Korean percussion. Jeng Yi's ribbon-hat dance is always a highlight. Traditionally, the streamers of the “Sangmo” (ribbon-hat) would have had shards of metal on them, and be used as a weapon in battle. Jeng Yi usually performed the ribbon-hat dance with the dancers providing their own drum accompaniment. New choreography has been created to suit a more intimate stage size, and in this performance two performers will be dancing with the Sogo (small tambours) that represent a shield, and a small stick which represents a dagger.

The ensemble is honoured to have Ms. Geun-Seo Park join them on the viola. The collaboration was initially an experiment to see if the viola could emulate the sound and feel of the Ajeng, a Korean six-string bowed zither. The experiment was so successful that the group continued to arrange and compose pieces for the viola. Frequent collaborator, Ms. Joo Hyung Kim will once again join the ensemble on the Kayagum, a traditional string zither.

Jeng Yi has been performing and touring since 1998 and has recently released their first album, The Occasion.

Tickets are $14 and $17, through the Harbourfront Centre Box Office in person or by calling 416-973-4000. Information is available online at www.jengyi.com

Live Comedy Showcase Featuring Asiansploitation Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival

Thursday, November 16th, 7:00 pm

Gladstone Hotel,
1214 Queen St. W, Toronto ON

Admission: $12 at the door or in advance through www.totix.ca

Asiansploitation, Toronto's New All-Asian Comedy Troupe, has been accepted into the 2nd annual Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival which features top comedy troupes from across North America. Performing alongside troupes from Chicago, Montreal, New York, Los Angeles, St.John's, San Francisco and Toronto will be an honour for Asiansploitation. Come see Toronto's newest and only All-Asian Comedy Troupe this November. We'll be performing alongside fellow troupe Approximately 3 Peters in an hour long show.

Web: http://www.torontosketchfest.com

Find out more about our troupe Asiansploitation at
http://www.asiansploitation.com

Chinese Canadian Entrepreneur Awards 2007

Call For Nominations

Presented by The BDC, The Association of Chinese Canadian Entrepreneurs in association with The Center of Entrepreneurship, Centennial College, The Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Ming Pao Daily News.

If you know of a successful business or company that is eligible to be nominated, we would be glad to hear from you. Nomination forms and additional information can be obtained from the Association of Chinese Canadian Entrepreneurs,

Tel. (905) 479-2802, email: awards@acce.ca, website: www.acce.ca.

Nomination closing date is December 4, 2006. The official Awards Gala will held in March 2007.

ELIGIBILITY
- A nominee's business must be registered in Ontario and has an operating office in the Province of Ontario.
- A nominee must be of Chinese origin and play a major role in the management of the business operation.
- A nominee or his/her business must not be the subject of any legal investigation.

NOMINATION PROCEDURE
- A candidate must be nominated by a third party, who must complete the nomination form and return it to the following address before the closing day.
- Entry can be made in either English or Chinese.

PURPOSE
- To promote entrepreneurship in the Chinese Canadian Community.
- To recognize the contribution of Chinese Canadian entrepreneurs.
- To encourage new business start-up.
- To promote social responsibilities in entrepreneurs.

Nominations can also be sent to postoffice@naaaptoronto.org

NAAAP Toronto is a proud supporting Community Partner encouraging entrepreneurial excellence in the community.

Kai Productions presents Aming Kasaysayan (Our History)

Featuring Kultura Filipino Performing Arts Society
With Special Guests Kathara Canada, Jessica Quibral, Mayo Landicho

On December 3, 2006 Kai Productions presents Aming Kasaysayan (Our History)at the Massey Theatre in New Westminster. The 1 and ½ hr family oriented presentation will sweep you away on a colorful and history filled journey around the South East Asian group of islands known as the Philippines. A wonderful event showcasing Filipino cultural arts, live music and History..

The Cast, composed primarily of North Shore based families the Kultura Filipino Performing Arts Society was originally created over five years ago and was spearheaded by the current board of directors of the Arts Society. The presentation is Directed and Choreographed by international renowned dance theatre artist/choreographer Rachel Cinco Matias of Mindanao Philippines.

“The debut presentation last October 7, 2006 at the Centennial Theatre in North Vancouver was amazing “ as one viewer put it. It proves that Community Cultural Arts does work as a mechanism to bridge the cultural diversity gap thus creating a unified Canada. Ultimately presentations like these send out a message. That message is to be pro- active and consciously aware of, and to care, for your community, city your country your home.

We encourage you to join projects like this in whatever way works for you but more importantly, participate in positively shaping the future, today.

Join us in presenting another one of the many beautiful faces of Canada’s Diversity and Arts Community at work.

Don’t miss this community kick off event to the 06/07Holiday Christmas Season!

For Info on Tickets or Sponsorship/ Advertising Kit
please contact Rachel and Ojay Matias 604 215 1166 ojaymatias@yahoo.ca

Telefilm announces $2M video game competition

(CBC) - Telefilm Canada will give up to $2 million to video game companies in its new game development contest, the Crown corporation announced at an industry conference in Montreal on Wednesday.

The Great Canadian Video Game Competition will see the federal agency fund jury-selected developers in a bid to help promote and foster growth of the country's home-grown industry.

In addition to the financing, winners who advance through the contest will receive advice from mentors experienced in the video game industry, Telefilm announced at the Montreal International Games Summit.

The competition's funding model will have three rounds, similar to industry financing.

In the first round, to be announced in January, 10 companies will receive up to $50,000 each to explore their concepts.

Round two in March 2007 will see four of those companies move to develop a prototype with up to $250,000 in funds.

The final round will give the winning company up to $500,000 in matching funds to take the game to market.

All participants will receive game production and business development advice from industry veterans, including executives from three of the biggest game developers with operations in Canada, market leader Electronic Arts Inc., French developer Ubisoft Entertainment, and Radical Entertainment Inc. of Vancouver.

© the CBC, 2006

Japanese video game developer draws inspiration from Kurosawa, Kandinsky

MONTREAL (CP) - His influences have ranged from filmmaker Akira Kurosawa to artist Wassily Kandinsky and the musical "Stomp." Japanese video game producer Tetsuya Mizuguchi is the brains behind such games as "Lumines," "Rez," "Ninety-Nine Nights," "Space Channel 5," "Manx TT Superbike" and the "Sega Rally" series.

The 41-year-old Tokyo native, who left Sega in 2003 to establish Q Entertainment, isn't your normal video game developer.

His inspiration for "Ninety-Nine Nights," the story of an epic battle between the forces of light and dark in a fantasy world, was drawn from Kurosawa's film "Rashomon" and 9-11, specifically watching news of the terrorist attack emerge from different countries via the Internet.

The gamer starts as a human warrior, taking on goblins and other dark forces in the Xbox 360 game released earlier this year. Then midway in, the viewpoint switches and you play as a goblin. "We've got trouble, humans," screams a goblin as he runs from the invading horde.

"Everybody has justice and everybody has their point of view of justice," Mizuguchi explained in English in his keynote speech Tuesday to the Montreal International Game Summit, while stressing he was not making any statement on violence or war in the world.

When Sony released the PlayStation Portable, Mizuguchi saw it as an "interactive Walkman." He used that inspiration to create "Lumines," a musical-puzzle title in which players try to clear the screen of blocks, with the musical score helping determine the challenge of the game. "Lumines" (2004) is widely considered one of the PSP's best games to date.

The newly released sequel takes the concept further by matching the puzzle to music by the likes of the Chemical Brothers, New Order, Beck, Missy Elliott and Fatboy Slim. In moving from Japanese electronic music to real hits, Mizuguchi says he was inspired by the customization offered by the iPod.

The game also includes Mizuguchi's original music video "Heavenly Star" by Genki Rockets, a Q Entertainment band. The video style draws on both Kandinsky and the band a-ha, according to Mizuguchi.

His 2000 musical game "Rez," a PlayStation title that allowed gamers to create sound and vision, came from a melange of Kandinsky paintings, a rave he attended in Zurich and a short-lived 1960s arcade machine dubbed "Sensorama" that offered taste, touch and smell as well as sound and vision.

"Space Channel Five," a 1999 cartoony "save the world from alien invasion by dance" game, was inspired by the musical "Stomp."

It drew the attention of one Michael Jackson, according to Mizuguchi, who recalls getting a phone call from an American producer who said "Michael wants to appear in your game."

Mizuguchi's response was "Who's Michael?"

The Japanese developer also remembered his first vision of the ground-breaking "Pong" game more than 30 years ago. "I was so surprised because the TV changed for something," he said.

Mizuguchi got his first job in the business some 16 years ago when he was blown away by an arcade game machine. He saw the name Sega on the back, "so I decided to join Sega."

Mizuguchi, whose Q Entertainment has some 50 employees, says he does not pay much attention to other games.

"Usually I don't play the games, because I don't have time to play the games," he said in an interview.

His inspiration comes from the world around him, with travel and the Internet allowing him to connect with cultures around the globe.

He says he does not know what his next project will be, except that music will be involved.

Notes: The two-day Montreal conference, in its third year, has drawn more than 900 participants ... Wayne Clarkson, head of Telefilm Canada, used the conference to announce details of the $2-million Great Canadian Video Game Competition. Phase 1 will see 10 Canadian developers chosen and given up to $50,000 each to create a concept and business plan for a game. Phase 2 narrows the field to four, who will each get up to $250,000 to continue the process. The final phase will see one winner given up to $500,000. For more information, go to www.telefilm.gc.ca/game.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Gamers give PlayStation 3 rave reviews

Associated Press

HONOLULU — Crammed in the corner of a hotel's banquet hall, they stood and stared silently, mesmerized by what they were seeing. They were watching a soldier gunning down a giant monster on one TV and Miami Heat's Dwayne Wade taking over an NBA game on the other screen. What they were really experiencing was the new Sony PlayStation 3.

The much-awaited video game console comes out Nov. 17 in the U.S., although getting one will be challenging.

Thousands of lucky gamers tested the PS3 over the weekend at the 2007 Sony Expo in Honolulu, two weeks before the debut.

Almost all were males — from boys with braces and baggy jeans to gray-haired baby boomers. They crowded around two gaming booths with the sleek, lean, black machine behind a plastic case.

"The graphics are crazy, way better than the second one," said Doug Morrison, a 20-year-old University of Hawaii student. "It's more realistic. It's smoother. It doesn't have any glitches.

"I'm going to get one no matter what."

Forget Elmo, the third-generation PlayStation will top many wish lists to Santa this holiday season. And hopefully Santa saved because the PS3 isn't cheap.

The system starts at $500 (U.S.) for a 20GB version. The price tag on the 60GB model is $600.

People looking to cash in on the high demand and limited supply are already selling their pre-reserved PS3 consoles on eBay for well over $2,000. Rights to one PS3 recently sold for $3,250, plus $50 for shipping. It received 48 bids.

Some stores began taking pre-orders on Oct. 10. At some GameStop and EB Game locations, the orders were snapped up within minutes.

Kazuo Hirai, chief executive of Sony Computer Entertainment America, said about 400,000 units will be available in the U.S. in the initial launch and an additional 600,000 by the end of this year.

Sony hopes to have a total of 2-million consoles in the U.S. market by the end of company's fiscal year, which ends in March.

"Unfortunately, there are going to be some shortages," Hirai said in an interview. "I ask for everybody's patience. We are pedal to the metal in terms of trying to get as many units as possible into both the Japanese and American market."

Hirai said he doesn't even have a PS3 at home yet, even though his 12-year-old son has been begging for one.

"He talks a good game about PlayStation 3 when he's at school, but he hasn't touched one and he hasn't seen one," Hirai said. "That's only fair for everybody."

With his back turned to Sony's new $7,000 TV, Robert McDuffie and his buddies were glued to a much smaller screen, watching someone play the first-person shooting game "Resistance: Fall of Man."

The 25-year-old Army sergeant from Daytona Beach, Fla. said he didn't attend the expo to check out Sony's new line of high-definition TVs, tiny digital cameras or ultrathin laptops.

"I came for the PS3," he said, anxiously waiting for a moment with the machine.

After playing for a few minutes, McDuffie said he was impressed.

"I'm just trying to figure out how to get one," he said. "I didn't pre-order, so I'm going to have to stand in line overnight."

The PS3 is driven by a high-powered cell processor, making game play super smooth and graphics amazingly detailed. A gigabit Ethernet for on-line gaming and a Blu-ray disc player comes standard on the console, as does a wireless controller.

The PS3 can play games and movies at "1080p," which is the highest definition resolution currently available.

But Sony has already experienced problems in developing the PS3. Sony reported a $366-million operating loss in its gaming division in the third quarter because of development charges. The launch in Europe was delayed until March 2007 because of mass production problems in the Blu-ray drive.

Tim Mah, 13, of Honolulu had one word for the new machine: "Wow."

Dyron Mack, a 35-year-old computer analyst, said he plans to buy a PS3 without consulting his wife or disclosing the cost.

"I'm not going to tell her. You just show up with it and let her be mad," he said. "You just say, 'I'm sorry. I lost the receipt.'"

Samsung unveils multifunction WiMax gadget

(CBC) - Samsung Electronics Co. has developed a three-way device that's a phone, personal computer and music player tailored for an emerging wireless broadband technology called Mobile WiMax.

The Mobile Intelligent Terminal was unveiled at a Samsung-sponsored industry conference on Mobile WiMax, which is just coming into use and promises fast broadband connections over long distances.

The device weighs about 400 grams and contains a fold-out keyboard, 12-centimetre screen and 30 GB hard drive. It runs the full version of Microsoft Corp.'s Windows XP operating system and also supports the CDMA mobile phone communications standard, which is used in South Korea and other countries including the United States.

Kim Hun-bae, Samsung vice-president for mobile research and development, told reporters that the gadget is the world's first WiMax device that also works as a mobile phone. It also can access the internet, make video phone calls and display television as well as other video. The Suwon, South Korea-based company said it plans to launch the device in South Korea during the first half of 2007. Samsung didn't mention any plans for marketing the device in the U.S. and other markets. It also didn't provide a price.

WiMax has been strongly backed by Samsung, which is co-operating with U.S. companies Intel Corp., Sprint Nextel Corp. and Motorola Inc. to commercialize it in the United States.

South Korea is the first country to commercialize WiMax, which promises fast wireless broadband connections and mobile roaming. Limited trials of Mobile WiMax are underway in South Korea, with plans to cover the capital, Seoul, by early next year.

Sprint Nextel has said it aims to launch WiMax networks in some U.S. markets by late 2007, working with Samsung, Motorola and Intel. Samsung is confident WiMax technology will soon become a global standard, a top executive said Tuesday.

"We have established a standard in South Korea, but it won't take long to spread throughout the world," Lee Ki-tae, president of Samsung's telecommunication network business, told reporters.

© the CBC, 2006

Cory Lee in RICEPAPER Magazine

Christina got dirrty, Britney got chaotic, but what’s grabbing everyone’s attention these days is Cory Lee’s naughtiness. With lines like, “tonight’s the night all the boys and girls are gonna f**k,” and “gotta get you out of my head… gotta get you in my bed,” the half-German, half-Chinese Vancouver native has raised the bar (and a few eyebrows) in Canadian indie music with her sultry looks and infectious mix of R&B, jazz, and pop. But there’s more to this pop persona than meets the eye: she’s also one of the most hardworking and down-to-earth artists you’ll ever meet.

Complete article: http://www.ricepaperonline.com/index.php?id=130

Asian film festival's Canadian winners

http://www.straight.com/content.cfm?id=21806
Craig Takeuchi

The Vancouver Asian Film Festival wrapped its 10th annual showcase of Asian cinematic talent at Tinseltown. At the VAFF Filmmaker's Luncheon on November 12, the winners of the best Canadian short were revealed. Ling Chiu's "Once a Fish", a tale about a woman's weekly visits to her father's grave, garnered the $200 third place award. Renuka Jeyapalan's "Big Girl" scooped second — and $300 — with a story of a girl's rivalry with her mother's boyfriend. Life paralleled art as John Penhall's "Inconvenience", about a store owner who discovers a winning lottery ticket, won him the $500 top spot.

Cape Breton U. receives major Asian-art donation

VAL ROSS
Globe and Mail

Toronto — Nova Scotia's Cape Breton University Art Gallery has just received $500,000 worth of Asian art and artifacts, the largest one-time gift ever given to the gallery.

It comes from Joseph Nearing, a retired doctor now living in Vancouver, in the form of his 2,500-piece art collection of Chinese ceramics, spanning the Stone Age to the present.

Zhang Ziyi, Dennis Quaid to star in crime thriller 'Horsemen'

HONG KONG (AP) - Chinese movie star Zhang Ziyi's new Hollywood project will be a crime thriller revolving around a series of killings that also stars Dennis Quaid, one of the movie's production companies said Tuesday. In "Horsemen," Quaid plays a detective who discovers a personal connection to the suspects in a group of serial killings that are linked to the biblical characters Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the production company, Los Angeles-based Mandate Pictures said in a statement.

Zhang plays a "manipulative young woman" who's crucial to solving the case, the statement said.

Jonas Akerlund, who made "Spun," about a drug-fuelled adventure, will direct, Mandate said.

Zhang rose to fame with her portrayal of a Chinese official's rebellious daughter in the Oscar-winning "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." She has since gone on to a successful career that spans Chinese-language film and Hollywood.

Zhang was most recently seen in "Memoirs of a Geisha" and Chinese director Feng Xiaogang's "The Banquet," a Chinese adaptation of the Shakespeare "Hamlet."

The statement from Mandate also said Zhang will star in "Shanghai" with Clive Owen and "Seven Samurai," both produced by Harvey Weinstein's The Weinstein Co., without giving any detail.

"Seven Samurai" was earlier reported as a remake of the 1954 Akira Kurosawa classic about a group of warriors who defend a village attacked by bandits. Zhang will reportedly play a village girl who dresses as a man to protect herself.

Set during the Second World War, "Shanghai" is about an American undercover intelligence agent who investigates the death of a fellow spy and has an affair with the wife of a Shanghai drug lord, according to the movie website Greg's Previews.

Zhang's manager, Ling Lucas, declined comment on the actress' involvement in "Shanghai" and "Seven Samurai," saying in an e-mail to The Associated Press it's "too early" to discuss the movies in detail.

Zhang also confirmed earlier she's interested in another Weinstein movie about the Chinese folk hero Hua Mulan, who replaces her father in battle. The character inspired the Disney animated movie by the same name.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Canadians still gaining weight but at slower pace, StatsCan finds

TORONTO (CP) - While the latest numbers from Statistics Canada suggest Canadians may be starting to get the message about the importance of healthy living, experts say the battle is far from over. A report released Monday shows that while Canadians who were measured at two-year intervals have been steadily gaining weight since 1996, the amount of weight they put on decreased for both men and women over the last two years of the survey.

Men between the ages of 18 and 64 gained an average of 1.5 pounds in 2004-2005, and women fared even better with an average of 1.3 pounds.

Overall, however, men and women of all ages have been steadily putting on weight over the past eight years, gaining an average of 8.8 pounds and 7.4 pounds respectively.

Dr. Howard Morrison, head of the science office at the centre for disease prevention and control with the Public Health Agency of Canada, said the recent decrease in weight gain does not necessarily signal a turning point for Canadians.

"The key will be to wait and see how it pans out," Morrison said in an interview. "This may represent a modest success story that things are slowing down, or it may just be a blip in the data. I wouldn't over-interpret it."

Morrison focused instead on the overarching message in the report, which makes it clear that Canadians still have a lot of work to do in order to shed unwanted weight.

He said weight loss is not simply a matter of esthetics, but essential to maintaining good health in the long run.

While obesity plays a key role in cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, Morrison stressed there are many other ailments that plague those who are overweight.

He said overweight individuals are at greater risk for several different types of cancer, especially of the colon or prostate. And he emphasized the toll additional weight can take on knees and hips, adding that joint replacements are more common among those with kilograms to lose.

It was concern for her health that prompted Joanne Hube to try and slim down two years ago.

The 47-year-old office manager from Mississauga, Ont., feared her excess weight could shorten her life and deprive her of quality time with her young daughter.

Hube has been able to buck the overall trend, dropping 46 pounds in just over two years.

But she discovered that shedding weight is a long and difficult process.

"Half of the weight I've tried to lose has been a very slow process, but I've never given up," she said.

The key for Hube was to make gradual changes to her lifestyle, starting with reducing portions and progressing to regular exercise and vigorous workouts.

But Hube feels she has to contend with social trends that make it difficult for people to drop extra pounds.

"Maybe it's just me, but I notice that our restaurants ... their portion sizes are increasing," she said. "I can't even eat it, it's just too much."

Hube said education was key to her weight loss, as she learned about the consequences of eating certain foods and discovering healthy alternatives.

To that end, the Public Health Agency of Canada has launched initiatives such as the Healthy Living Strategy, a multi-faceted program designed to teach Canadians of all ages ways to improve their lifestyles.

Morrison hopes the programs will be especially effective for younger Canadians, who are gaining the most weight, according to the Statistics Canada report.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Toyota sees profits surge as U.S. rivals struggle

The Associated Press

Toyota said Tuesday its net profit for the second quarter rose 34 per cent, boosted by strong sales in North America and Europe at a time when its U.S. rivals are struggling.

The Japanese automaker, on pace to overtake General Motors Corp. as the world's biggest automaker in coming years, also raised its profit forecast for the full fiscal year through March to 1.55 trillion yen ($13.14 billion US), up from an earlier 1.31 trillion yen.

For the fiscal second quarter, ended in September, Toyota Motor Corp. posted 405.7 billion yen ($3.44 billion US) in group net profit, up 33.5 per cent from the 303.7 billion yen reported for the same period last year.

Overall sales in the fiscal second quarter rose 17.3 per cent to 5.83 trillion yen ($49.4 billion US). Sales were up in North America, thanks to the strong sales of redesigned models such as the RAV4 and Yaris, and the new model FJ Cruiser.

'Eating the pie of the Big Three'
"It looks like Toyota's efforts to overtake GM are going according to plan," said Shiichiro Kobayashi of Mitsubishi UFJ Research and Consulting. "Basically, Toyota is eating the pie of the Big Three in the United States."

Both GM and Ford Motor Co. reported losses in the most recent quarter, and in July Toyota for the first time beat Ford in U.S. vehicle market share.

Toyota's stellar results came despite a string of potentially damaging recalls because of defective parts, and investigations of the company in the United States and Japan. Toyota officials reiterated their pledge Tuesday to preserve the company's reputation for excellence while keeping down costs.

"Our business is expanding," said Takeshi Suzuki, Toyota's senior managing director. "The biggest task is how to maintain quality and create cars that are competitive in terms of prices."

Record vehicle sales
Consolidated vehicle sales for the quarter hit 2.1 million units, up nine per cent. For the half-year, vehicle sales were a record 4.2 million, the company said.

Toyota upped its sales forecast for the year to 8.5 million units. Compact models such as Aygo and Yaris helped boost sales in Europe. Sales in Japan edged down.

The results were in step with general good times for Japanese automakers. Nissan Motor Co.'s quarterly profit rose 31 per cent. Honda Motor Co. said last month that second-quarter profit slipped, but it was still well into the black.

By contrast, GM posted a $115-million US loss for the third quarter last week, saying its results reflected benefits of its turnaround plan. The company also continued to lose market share in the quarter. Globally, its share was 13.9 per cent, down from 14.4 per cent during the same period last year.

Isuzu stake

Toyota, meanwhile, is planning to increase overseas production by 40 per cent of its 2005 level to five million vehicles by 2008, a Japanese media report said recently.

Toyota also announced on Tuesday that it is buying a 5.9 per cent stake in Japanese truckmaker Isuzu as part of a new deal for the manufacturers to collaborate in engine technology.

Toyota and Isuzu Motors Ltd. plan to work together in researching and developing small diesel engines, including co-operating on emission-control technologies as well as alternative fuel technologies, the companies said in a statement.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Actors group demands more Canadian drama on TV

CBC Arts

The organization representing Canadian actors has called on the country's private broadcasters to invest more in homegrown television dramas.

"Canadian TV drama is still disappearing while our private broadcasters are spending at an all-time high on American programming," actor Howard Storey, the president of the British Columbia chapter of the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists, said in a news release.

ACTRA issued their challenge to private broadcasters during the annual Canadian Association of Broadcasters convention in Vancouver on Monday.

Gabrielle Miller, who plays diner proprietress Lacey Burrows on Corner Gas, said her show's success proves it is possible to appeal to Canadians with Canadian content.

"The support and commitment that this television series continues to receive has been critical and we need to build on this success by increased funding and scheduling support for more Canadian dramatic programming," she said.

"We're focusing on more reality television, when what we need is new rules to protect our Canadian cultural sovereignty and to get more homegrown dramas on our televisions."

ACTRA has already made a submission to the federal communications watchdog, the CRTC, calling for private broadcasters to spend at least seven per cent of advertising revenues on Canadian English-language dramas and schedule at least two more hours in prime time between Sunday and Thursday.

Appeal made amid stalled labour talks
The organization's stand comes at an awkward time, as it is currently embroiled in a protracted labour dispute with the Canadian Film & Television Production Association and its Quebec equivalent.

Talks on a new Independent Production Agreement broke down after producers called for pay cuts of 10 to 25 per cent on film and TV productions shot in Canada.

ACTRA responded by calling on the producers to withdraw the demands before they would return to the bargaining table.

The producers association shot back by filing an 110-page complaint to the Ontario Labour Board accusing ACTRA of unfair labour practices.

Both sides in the acrimonious dispute are already blaming the other in the event of a work stoppage, which would occur if an agreement isn't reached when the current labour pact ends on Dec. 31, 2006.

Separate mediators have been appointed for both Quebec and Ontario and sidebar discussions geared to getting the sides talking again have been planned for Nov. 14.

University enrolment surpasses one-million mark in 2004-05 academic year

OTTAWA (CP) - Enrolment in Canadian universities surpassed the one-million mark for the first time during the 2004-05 academic year, fuelled by the influx of students from Ontario's double cohort two years earlier as well as rising numbers of foreign pupils and growing numbers of young adults. Statistics Canada says there were 1.01 million university registrations, the seventh straight year in which enrolment hit a record high, though the 2.1 per cent growth from the previous academic year was the lowest margin this decade.

Most of the growth in 2004-05 was fuelled by students aged 18 to 24, whose numbers increased 2.9 per cent to just over 654,000; they accounted for 64 per cent of total enrolment.

A record 75,200 students from other countries enrolled in programs at Canadian universities in 2004-05, up 7.3 per cent from the previous year; international students represented 7.4 per cent of total registrations, and half of them were from Asia.

Ontario's elimination of Grade 13 in 2002-03 has had a lasting impact on enrolment, boosting registrations at the time 6.4 per cent, still the strongest increase since 1974-75.

Women continued to vastly outnumber men in Canadian universities in 2004-05, accounting for 58 per cent of all registrations.

Total undergraduate enrolment hit 785,800, up two per cent.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Grace Park in AUDREY Magazine

Grace Park exudes an all-American girl aura — she’s makeup-free, dressed California casual, with a warm, easygoing smile. Yet few people realize that the actor on the highly acclaimed, highly rated SCI FI Channel series Battlestar Galactica, now in its third season, is actually Canadian.

Complete article: http://www.audreymagazine.com/Sep2006/Feature01.asp

NAAAP Toronto Celebrates the 10th-Anniversary of the Reel Asian International Film Festival

Saturday, November 18, 6:30 pm | Panel Session 7-9 pm, Film Screening 9 pm

Innis College Café - Innis College
2 Sussex Avenue (off St. George St., north of Harbord St.)
Toronto ON M5S 1J5
Web: www.utoronto.ca/townhall

NAAAP Members: $5.00
Non Members: $20.00 (Non members who RSVP: $15.00)

BONUS: The first 25 attendees will receive a free pass (good for 2) to the
Reel Asian Interntaional Film Festival Closing Night Gala on Sunday, Nov. 19.

EXECUTIVE SUITE: ASIAN-CANADIANS IN FILM & TV (PANEL & RECEPTION)

What's it like to be Asian on the other side of the camera? While it's hard enough for Asian actors to gain visibility in film and TV, what are the challenges, responsibilities, rewards and obstacles facing Asian-Canadian executives? Do they have a responsibility to greenlight
Asian projects, or do they risk backlash? Are workplaces encouraging diversity? Are cultures themselves discouraging professionals from entering film and TV? This informal panel and reception shows that film and TV is industry open to Asians. Meet key players and discuss their career experiences in an intimate setting. Introducing our panelists for the evening...

Anita Lee - Producer, National Film Board of Canada (Toronto)
Jennifer Pun - Finance and Business Affairs, Capri Releasing
Sunny Yi - Program Executive, Independent Documentary Unit, CBC Television
Daphne Park - Vice President, Production & Business Affairs, Norstar Filmed Entertainment Inc.

**Special NAAAP Film Screening of "Journey from The Fall"**

Inspired by actual events, Journey from the Fall follows one family's fight for freedom in the wake of war-torn Vietnam, communist political prison camps, and the mass exodus of boat people.

Against his wife's wishes, Long Nguyen chooses to stay in Vietnam and fight for his beloved country. Knowing that his decision may separate him from his family forever, he asks his wife, Mai, to leave their homeland for safer shores. Together with her son and mother-in-law, Mai reluctantly boards a tiny fishing boat bound for America and they begin a perilous journey across the sea, with nothing but hope to keep them alive.

Meanwhile, as the city of Saigon falls under communist rule, Long is captured and imprisoned in a series of re-education camps. There, he endures solitary confinement and witnesses the death of his friends, spiraling him downwards into a deep despair. Believing his family is dead, Long's faith is revived when a mysterious visitor brings news of their survival in the new world. In one moment his fate becomes clear, and he sets in motion a dangerous plan to escape and join his family in freedom.

Journey from the Fall is dedicated to the millions of boat people and survivors of the communist re-education camps. This is their story.

NAAAP Toronto November Mixer Edition Includes:
* Complimentary hors-d'oeuvres served
* Attire: Business or Business Casual
* Remember to bring lots of business cards!

RSVP prior to Thursday, November 17; 5:00pm pm via email to rsvp@naaaptoronto.org or
directly on our website www.naaaptoronto.org

www.reelasian.com | November 15-19, 2006

NAAAP Toronto's signature monthly Business Mixers coupled with our Professional Development Series are designed to be your professional community forum, enjoy lively conversation, mix and mingle, build new contacts and get re-acquainted with old ones at some of Toronto's most popular evening hot spots.

Project H2O

Call for Submissions - Deadline: December 10, 2006

Project H2O is a special interdisciplinary exhibition-performance gallery to be launching its first year during the explorASIAN Festival in May 2007.

Inspired by the phenomenal ground-breaking water crystal work by the Japanese researcher-writer Masaru Emoto, Project H2O calls for submissions and proposals about water in all forms: music, dance, theatre, film/video, performance art, installation, visual art, poetry, spoken words and research papers.

Forum/Workshop proposals from scientific/environmental/spiritual groups are also encouraged.

Submissions/Proposals must include project description, artist/organization bio, info about the performers/duration/budget as well as sample of works (if applicable).

Mail submissions to: explorASIAN Festival
c/o Ya-wen V. Wang, Project Curator
110 Keefer Street, Vancouver, BC V6A 1X4

Info: www.explorasian.org or email yw@asianrainwerk.com or phone 604.677.1383

THE 70 MOST INSPIRING ASIAN AMERICANS OF ALL TIME

Pioneers who paved the way for other Asian Americans.

How do you cull hundreds of uniquely inspired and inspiring achievements and compile a list like this? Painstakingly -- and with the humbling recognition that lists like this mean nothing to those they include and little more to those they omit. Every omission is mostly a function of limited time and energy. Every ranking is the product of judgments reflective more of our own limited knowledge than of the actual achievements we were considering.

So much for the caveats. Now our method. We considered several hundred Asian American achievers in every field for which information is publicly available. We then valued and ranked candidates based on our appraisal of their positive impact, firstly, in inspiring other Asian Americans, and secondly, in inspiring Americans at large.

An example: Filipino American quarterback Roman Gabriel is ranked behind French-Open winner Michael Chang because Gabriel's ethnicity wasn't publicized until two decades after he retired. That limited his cumulative impact on young Asian Americans and on the perception others have of Asians. Some will question why we left out people more famous than many we included. Fame doesn't equal positve impact. Serial killers are famous but have less positive impacts than shoeshine boys.

We also weighed the social climate in which these men and women made their mark. Consider a one-armed World War II veteran who rose to prominence as a Senator in an age when some barbers refused to cut his hair. Consider an actor who made himself the world's top star in an age when Hollywood relegated Asians to playing servants.

This is a living list, to be adjusted as time reveals more inspiring Asian Americans or amplifies the impact of those listed.

View the list: http://goldsea.com/Personalities/Inspiring/inspiring.html

Doctor-author offers his literary diagnosis

Giller prizewinner Vincent Lam talks writing, not medicine, at workshop
`The link between doctors and writers is narrative,' physician tells John Goddard

Nov. 9, 2006
JOHN GODDARD
STAFFREPORTER
www.thestar.com

The medical profession's newest literary star, Dr. Vincent Lam, will talk to doctors who aspire to be writers in a workshop next month.

There is no equivalent workshop for writers wanting to be doctors on the side. Precedents exist for doctors becoming successful literary figures, not the other way around.

Russian playwright and short story writer Anton Chekhov was a physician. So was American poet William Carlos Williams and Afghan writer Khaled Hosseini, author of the bestselling The Kite Runner.

Lam works in the emergency department at Toronto East General Hospital. On Monday, he won the country's richest literary award, the $40,000 Scotiabank Giller Prize, for his first book, a short-story collection called Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures.

He is also to be keynote speaker Dec. 9 at a daylong workshop presented by the Humber School for Writers, with an expected audience of 65 physicians.

"The link between doctors and writers is narrative," Lam said at home yesterday, taking time to savour his prize before getting back to the workaday gore of the emergency ward.

"What happens is, someone tells me the start of a story, and much of what I'm supposed to do is tell them the ending. The other thing I'm supposed to do is make the ending of the story better."

By coincidence, B.C. writer and doctor Kevin Patterson was also in Toronto yesterday, publicizing his latest work, Consumption, a novel about an Inuit woman in the 1960s who is flown south for tuberculosis treatment.

"Doctors have, for many years ... presented medicine as a discipline that is 95 per cent science and 5 per cent art, but I don't think that's accurate," Patterson said of a day job that, in his case, takes him on frequent visits to Arctic settlements.

"As an internist, I get people to tell me a story," he said, echoing Lam. "They tell me a story about their unintended weight loss, or night sweats, or visual blurring, and then I interpret that story ...

"If you read a great, well-written consultation note, a `history and physical,' it has all the features of a short story, including foreshadowing and characterization."

Clear thinking counts in both professions, said Dr. Paul Hannam, head of Toronto East General's emergency department and Lam's boss.

"His writing style is a clear type of writing," Hannam said of his long-time friend and colleague. "Certainly the way (Lam) speaks and the way he thinks and also the way he writes, it's a very concise type of style, which is definitely how we're trained to think."

Hannam knows of no other aspiring writers among the 20 or so doctors in his department.

Everybody on staff was excited about the Giller win, he said. But even before the honour, Lam's portrayal of certain hospital situations resonated with his fellow physicians.

"In the emergency department," Hannam said, "the human experience is laid bare all the time, in all its glory, or not, and everybody responds differently to different circumstances."

In the interlocking stories of the prize-winning book, the four main characters represent various sides of himself, Lam said in a calm, dispassionate way that suggests a gentle bedside manner.

"We all have these shadowy parts that fall into the category of what could have been, or what might have been, or on a bad day what we get awfully close to," he said.

All the characters are doctors: Ming, obsessive about science, is compelled to achieve her goals regardless of personal cost. Fitz risks becoming lost in his striving to see the big picture. Sri unfailingly sees his patients as people, rendering him vulnerable but richly human. And Chen, the negotiator and diplomat, stands perhaps too apart from a situation.

"The events are completely fictional," Lam said, though one story is likely to stand out for Toronto readers.

It may be the only literary work to date to take a reader inside the 2003 SARS crisis, when 375 people in Toronto were infected with the respiratory virus, and 44 died.

Lam was at the front lines. He never got sick, but in his story Contact Tracing, he draws on experience to create medical workers facing their own death.

"(The SARS crisis) was earth-shaking for all of us who worked and lived through it," Lam said. "We were confronted with a kind of vulnerability that we had not previously experienced.

"It was a terrifying time that forced us to ask questions, while we were delivering health care, about why we were doing what we were doing."

Lam has a novel in the works set in his grandfather's Vietnam, and he co-wrote a book released last month on the potential flu pandemic. But medicine, he said, continues to be an integral part of his life and "immensely satisfying."

Prizewinning fiction, pure and undoctored

Giller Prize winner Vincent Lam's approach, in life as in literature, is to keep it simple
VAL ROSS

With a report from James Adams

TORONTO -- Vincent Lam's face is benign and smooth, his voice light, with each syllable precisely articulated. A question about his salary elicits a response -- "Why do you want to know? Is that relevant?" -- that would sound rude from someone else.

But from the 32-year-old man who on Tuesday night won the $40,000 Giller Prize for a collection titled Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures, it sounds curious and concerned, the professional tone a doctor uses to ask, "How do you feel if I pull on this?" And because he's an emergency room doctor at Toronto's East General Hospital, he knows the right voice for not alarming patients, or journalists, while sincerely trying to understand their needs.

The day after his Giller victory, Dr. Lam is being hounded by journalists. No wonder: The combination of parents emigrating from Vietnam, a job in emergency room gore, a chance encounter with Margaret Atwood that helped him find a publisher, and winning Canada's most glamorous literary prize on his very first try is genuine real-life drama.

To help field all the media requests, his mother-in-law is at the downtown Toronto apartment where he lives with his wife, Marguerite, a family doctor, and their toddler son. What is his son's name? "Let's leave that out," says Dr. Lam gently, shielding his family as if he's an old hand at dealing with reporters.

Print Edition - Section Front
Enlarge Image

More National Stories
Natives threaten action over landfill
Prizewinning fiction, pure and undoctored
Pickton judge lays out rules for spectators
Legion takes on activists in War of the Poppies
Gangs spark rise in Canadian gun deaths
The strange case of Myriam Bédard
Go to the National section
Dr. Lam's approach, in life and in prose, is to keep it simple, forceful yet subtle. Inevitably, Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures has macabre scenes. In one, medical students dissecting an old man's cadaver stop when they come to his arm, tattooed with a cross and an inscription, The Lord Keeps Me - Mark 16. The students debate whether cutting across religious symbols is disrespectful of the dead.

This is heavy stuff, but delicately, the writer leaves the debate unresolved. When asked what his stories are saying about religion and death, Dr. Lam gives a light laugh. "I just intend these things to be there, as they are, so that readers can turn them over in their minds."

His refusal to go for the obvious or the sensational is what the Giller jurors, Adrienne Clarkson, Michael Winter and Alice Munro, admired about Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures. After deliberating for an hour and a half, the book they chose was "not exciting, racy stories about medicine, because we have that in things like TV's ER," Ms. Clarkson said on Giller night. "Whether it's about death happening suddenly or about people learning how to deal with death . . . you just have to see what particular way it was dealt with. I think it was dealt with extremely well by Vincent Lam."

Dealing with things extremely well must be a family trait. Dr. Lam's father, Andrew, who plays classical violin, earned an agriculture degree in Australia and then came to Canada to do an MBA. He is now a Canadian diplomat, stationed in China, with Vincent's mother Rosalie, an architect.

As a student, their son excelled by methodically breaking subjects down into component parts; as an author, describing the work habits of med students, he deploys a similar strategy.

The Lams are ethnic Chinese and Catholic. Born on Sept. 5, 1974, in London, Ont., Dr. Lam attended St. Pius X School in Ottawa after the family moved there in the late 1970s. He studied violin and was good enough, by the age of 15, to become a successful busker, playing Bach in Ottawa's Byward Market.

What did he earn? "More than I did as an intern." How much? "Is it relevant?" he inquires. Satisfied that it is, he says that on weekends he made as much as $100 a day. More important, he was good enough to play violin duets with his father in church.

Attending the University of Toronto, he met his future wife, half Greek-Cypriot and half Anglo, in a history class. She too is a polymath, a doctor who trained as a dancer. She too is a Christian. They married in 2000 in a Greek Orthodox church and now attend Anglican services. They also love travelling to wild places; in February, they'll visit Antarctica.

The icy landscape may have new meaning. It was on an Arctic cruise that Dr. Lam met Margaret Atwood in 2002. He'd signed on to be ship's doctor, and had already drafted several stories when he noted her name on the ship's manifest. "What a shame!" he remembers saying aloud, "I didn't bring any of my book."

Then he noticed Ms. Atwood just behind him. "I still don't know if she heard me." But he refrained from asking her if she'd mind looking at his work until the end of the voyage. When he finally did ask, she demanded, "Do you want me to tell you something nice, or something honest?"

Be honest, he said. Back in Toronto, he sent his stories off. A few months later, he found her e-mail response. The final line was: "Congratulations, you can write."

This week, the Giller judges reached the same conclusion.

Japan becomes land of the fading sons

More than one in five Japanese is now 65 or older, the government said, fuelling concerns over the burden presented by a rapidly ageing society.

The population of seniors reached 25.6 million, a record high, last year, translating into 20.04 per cent of the total population, up 0.54 per cent from the year before, the Cabinet Office's white paper on aged society said.

The report came a day after the Health Ministry announced the country's birth rate last year dropped to a record low of 1.25 babies per woman, down from 1.29 in 2003 and 2004.

The declining birth rate and expanding elderly population pose serious concerns for Japan as it has to tackle a labour shortage and eroding tax base.

The white paper portrayed an even grimmer picture for the future, saying roughly one in four Japanese may be aged 65 or older in 2015, and about one in three in 2050.

The elderly population is expected to continue rising until 2020 but the total population is expected to decrease, pushing up the ratio of the elderly, it said.

The government said earlier this year that the nation's population dropped last year for the first time on record.

Copyright © 2006 Asian Pacific Post. All Right Reserved

The Chinese conundrum

Faced with acute pain, most people head for the nearest hospital. For many chronic conditions, however, more than 5 per cent of Australians now use traditional Chinese medicine, according to Professor Charlie Xue, head of the division of Chinese Medicine at the RMIT University.

Western medicine is some way from wholeheartedly embracing traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), but there have been moves to incorporate aspects of it. “When I came to Australia from China 12 years ago, the medical profession didn’t want to know about Chinese medicine, but now it’s more open-minded,” Xue says, according to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald.

In Xue’s case, this open-mindedness has seen his treatments incorporated into an emergency medicine setting. “My team now provides acupuncture to treat patients in pain at the emergency department at Melbourne’s Northern Hospital - if we’d suggested this 10 years ago, people would have laughed at us.”

The World Health Organisation has acknowledged the role such medicine plays in health treatments, and in 2002 launched a strategy to gather more evidence on its safety and efficacy. That same year, Australia’s first Chinese Medicine Clinical Research Centre opened in Liverpool Hospital to run clinical trials of herbal medicine and acupuncture for gynaecological problems.

The trials included research into the effect of Chinese herbs on endometriosis. Sydney policewoman Gina*, 32, took part in the trials and, after a decade of debilitating period pain, no longer juggles her shifts to ensure her time off coincides with her periods.

“The first period I had after taking the herbs was much less painful, and by the second month, there was no pain at all,” she says. “It’s been life-altering.”

Meanwhile, with two unsuccessful attempts at in vitro fertilisation, only one functioning fallopian tube and her 41st birthday looming, Joanne Day wasn’t optimistic about conceiving - especially when a doctor diagnosed problems with her new partner’s sperm.

“The specialist said the only way we’d conceive was with IVF, but I didn’t want to go through that again,” says Day, who instead consulted Jann Mehmet, a TCM practitioner in Rozelle. After a few months of regular acupuncture and a healthier diet, she conceived at 41 and had a baby at 42.

“The word is out that acupuncture can treat muscular-skeletal problems, irregular periods, coughs and colds, infertility and many other conditions,” says North Shore practitioner Melissa Scott.

“At first people came as a last resort. Now we find that people who have success with Chinese medicine often come with subsequent problems, rather than go to a GP first. What draws many people is that they’re wary of the side effects of some Western medication.

“Drugs are often Band-Aids that treat symptoms but not the underlying cause - with eczema, for instance, you can be given cortisone to reduce inflammation but it doesn’t address the cause. TCM on the other hand can help by strengthening the immune system and digestive function.”

Few Western-trained doctors refer patients to a TCM practitioner, though one doctor now refers children with eczema to Scott for pediatric massage - an alternative to acupuncture for children who are afraid of needles.

The barriers to more doctors referring patients for TCM include lack of registration - only Victoria has a registration system for its practitioners - and lack of evidence for its benefits.

Still, Xue says, it is the subject of increasing study and there’s some evidence that acupuncture helps treat headaches, period pain, back pain and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. Studies suggest it may improve IVF’s success, though it’s unclear why.

“It may increase blood flow to the uterus,” says Dr Caroline Smith, who has conducted a study of acupuncture and IVF through the University of Adelaide. “It needs more research, but we know acupuncture does no harm and may increase women’s chances of success.”

As for Chinese herbal medicine, its acceptance lags behind acupuncture, which now attracts a Medicare rebate provided it’s done by a medical doctor trained in acupuncture.

Copyright © 2006 Asian Pacific Post. All Right Reserved

Coming attractions

As its filmmakers and moviegoers gain Hollywood's attention, South Korea aims to broaden its share of the world's cinema market.
By Lorenza Muñoz and Josh Friedman, Times Staff Writers
November 5, 2006

In a business where the one language everyone speaks is money, Hollywood is searching for its creative Seoul.

Once a backwater of international cinema, South Korea has become one of the world's hottest film centers, churning out box-office hits and critical favorites that have studio executives and agents scrambling for remake rights, distribution deals and talent relationships.

This week in Santa Monica, 21 South Korean companies sent about 100 representatives to the annual American Film Market movie bazaar, one of the largest contingents from any country. Distribution rights to more than 100 South Korean movies are being offered.

Friday night, in Hollywood, the AFI Fest movie festival was set to screen the Los Angeles debut of the much-anticipated horror flick "The Host," about a mutant creature that emerges from Seoul's Han River to devour humans. Scheduled to be released next year in U.S. theaters, the movie has already been seen by more than a quarter of South Korea's 49 million people.

For Hollywood studios, South Korea is now the second-most significant Asian market after Japan. Smelling opportunity, South Korea's government last week announced it would commit more than $500 million toward its film industry's goal of doubling its share of the world movie market by 2011.

"It is now a strong national cinema and can be talked about in the same breath as, for example, French, Spanish or Japanese cinema," said Tony Safford, senior vice president of acquisitions for 20th Century Fox.

The first major remake of a South Korean film to hit U.S. screens, the romantic drama "The Lake House" starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, became a sleeper hit this summer for Warner Bros., grossing more than $100 million worldwide.

Universal Pictures is planning a version of the thriller "Oldboy" and this week bought the remake rights to "The Host." Paramount Pictures' DreamWorks SKG will release a remake of the horror drama "A Tale of Two Sisters" in 2008.

What changed in South Korea was the emergence of a generation of filmmakers who cut their creative teeth studying Hollywood movies.

At the same time, deep-pocketed multinational corporations bankrolled the modernization of South Korean cinemas, whose audiences hungry for quality films have made moviegoing a vibrant business, with admissions soaring 29% in the last year.

In South Korea, movies are social events. Patrons pay as much as $30 a ticket, often spending an entire evening in the theater complex, eating and mingling.

On a recent Friday night in Seoul, moviegoers at a multiplex were surprised by a visit from the director and two stars of a new hit film "The Great Family Tree."

"Oh, feel free to alter my picture all you like," joked actor Jung Jae-young as star-struck fans flashed their digital cameras. "If possible, please make the body a bare muscular chest that clearly shows the abdominal muscles."

One key entrepreneur in South Korea's movie boom is a woman who successfully leveraged her ties to three of Hollywood's most powerful players.

A decade ago, Lee Mie-kyung, known as Miky Lee, granddaughter of the founder of the Samsung Corp. electronics empire, provided $300 million in much-needed seed money to DreamWorks SKG, the studio launched by moguls Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen.

It was more than a passive investment. Gaining exclusive South Korean distribution rights to such DreamWorks titles as "The Peacemaker" and "What Lies Beneath," Lee built the foundation of a movie powerhouse. In 1998, Lee's CJ Entertainment, a division of CJ Group, opened the country's first state-of-the-art multiplex.

"She was incredibly passionate about the business and about her interest in building an industry in Korea," Katzenberg said.

CJ Entertainment and other corporations such as Lotte Group began erecting multiplexes in South Korean cities and suburbs with digital sound, air conditioning, stadium seating and, in some cases, adjoining bars and restaurants.

Samsung, CJ Entertainment and South Korean confectioner Orion Group, meanwhile, built production divisions to supply theaters with movies. Since the mid-1990s, the number of South Korean movie screens has jumped more than threefold to 1,634 at the end of last year.

A breakthrough came in 1999 when the $8.5-million movie "Shiri," financed by Samsung, became South Korea's first true blockbuster. It took in $34 million at the box office, eclipsing South Korean receipts for Hollywood's all-time box-office champion, "Titanic."

In 2001, the drama "Friend" grossed about $45 million. And, in 2003, the action thriller "Silmido" raised the stakes, grossing more than $60 million. Currently, "The Host" has grossed nearly $100 million.

"We believe our moviemaking has truly come a long way," Lee said. "We hope we continue to push the envelope of creativity with the films that come out of Korea."

It's not just flashy cinemas that are fueling South Korea's movie business. Filmmakers are developing contemporary, relevant entertainment for a country that was long starved for quality homegrown fare.

Some film officials are comparing the current renaissance to one of Hollywood's creative high points 30 years ago when such maverick filmmakers as Martin Scorsese and Hal Ashby first flourished.

"In Korea, what happened creatively is similar to what was happening in Hollywood in the '70s where the filmmakers were saying, 'Let's go make great movies and see how they do,' " said Ted Kim, executive vice president of CJ Entertainment America.

Homemaker Kim Eun-ryong, who lives in Ilsan on the outskirts of Seoul, tries to schedule a movie night every other month with three of her friends.

"I think we are watching Korean films more these days," she said. "It's a kind of mob psychology. When the masses say a film is fun, other people hearing the rumor go to see it."

Andrew Cripps, president of United International Pictures, remembers a different environment when the company, the foreign distribution arm of Paramount and Universal, opened its South Korean office in 1987.

"The pictures told small, parochial stories," Cripps said. "Now Korean filmmakers are telling stories that are far more accessible to young people."

South Korean filmmakers defy easy description, said Tom Quinn, head of acquisitions at Magnolia Pictures, which is releasing "The Host" in the U.S.

"They're exceptionally stylish without being a slave to style," he said. "They embrace all aspects of cinema — the camera, the ensemble, the narrative. 'The Host' is thrilling but it devotes equal time to the family struggle."

The recent "The King and the Clown" — dubbed the Korean "Brokeback Mountain" — deals with a gay theme that not long ago would have been taboo in the country.

Roy Lee, whose L.A.-based Vertigo Entertainment produced the remakes of the Japanese horror films "The Grudge" and "The Ring," believes that South Korean filmmakers have become trendsetters but that it may be hard for Hollywood to harness them.

Vertigo is remaking four South Korean movies for U.S. studios. He would love to see the original directors try their hands at the remakes and make Hollywood movies, he said, but it might be difficult to woo them.

"Sometimes the Hollywood studio development process results in movies losing their individuality and uniqueness," he said. "Over there, they are not stifled."

Still, the growth in South Korea's film industry has heightened tensions with Hollywood over rules that limit the number of days a theater can show foreign films.

South Koreans are notoriously protective of their own films. In 1988, people going to see the first Hollywood release in South Korea, the Glenn Close-Michael Douglas thriller "Fatal Attraction," were rattled by snakes that had been released in theaters in what was seen as a guerrilla strike to protect Korean culture from American movies.

U.S. trade officials and the Motion Picture Assn. of America have long criticized any film quota as an impediment to free trade. But South Koreans see their system as a necessary measure to protect the country's native film industry.

"The Korean screen quota system has been the driving force behind reviving Korean culture," director Lee Jun-ik said.

Nonetheless, South Korean officials bowed to U.S. pressure and relaxed quotas by half earlier this year amid noisy protests from local filmmakers.

"The Host" will be the next big test of South Korea as an exporter of films in an international movie market that can be brutal. In June, CJ Entertainment distributed the South Korean action thriller "Typhoon" in the U.S., but it flopped, grossing just $139,000 here.

Still, CJ Entertainment America believes the U.S. is ready for South Korean films, especially in the Los Angeles area, home to more than 250,000 Korean Americans. The company is planning a multiplex in Koreatown to broaden the reach of South Korean and other Asian films and also aims to distribute its own films.

"We believe these films should be seen outside of Korea," CJ Entertainment's Kim said. "We see ourselves as Korean film evangelists."

lorenza.munoz@latimes.com
josh.friedman@latimes.com

Times staff writer Bruce Wallace and researcher Jinna Park in Seoul contributed to this article.

Toronto doctor Vincent Lam wins $40,000 Scotiabank Giller Prize

TORONTO (CP) - Vincent Lam, a local emergency room doctor who helped battle the city's SARS crisis of three years ago, won the lucrative Scotiabank Giller Prize on Tuesday night for his book of short stories, "Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures."
"I am astounded and in many ways overcome," Lam, 32, told a packed ballroom as he accepted the $40,000 award. "Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures" (Doubleday Canada) is comprised of 12 interconnected stories about a group of up-and-coming physicians.

Lam said he would be back to work at the hospital Wednesday afternoon, insisting he has no plans to give up his medical career in favour of writing.

"I thoroughly enjoy writing and I thoroughly enjoy being a physician and I'm proud to do both, and my intention is to continue to do both," said the boyish-looking author.

Lam's career received a significant boost about three years ago when he met acclaimed author Margaret Atwood while working as a doctor on a ship. He worked up the courage to ask her to read his manuscript and she agreed.

"Since then she has continued to be very supportive and is a great friend," he said.

While past Giller winners have included literary stars like Atwood, Mordecai Richler and Alice Munro, this year's short list was made up of lesser-known writers.

Competing against Lam were Montreal resident Rawi Hage for "De Niro's Game" (House of Anansi Press), Montreal-born Pascale Quiviger for "The Perfect Circle" (Cormorant Books), Montreal's Gaetan Soucy for "The Immaculate Conception" (House of Anansi Press), and Carol Windley of Nanaimo, B.C., for "Home Schooling" (Cormorant Books).

Some 500 guests gathered at the Four Seasons Hotel for the black-tie gala. Political stars in attendance included Liberal leadership candidate Bob Rae, and former Ontario premiers Ernie Eves and David Peterson. Also on hand were Margaret Trudeau, musician Murray McLauchlan, and opera diva Measha Brueggergosman.

"It's the absolute opposite end of the universe from what a writer does," Windley said as she surveyed the glitzy scene.

The show, broadcast by CTV, was hosted by Justin Trudeau with presentations by Atwood, actors Wendy Crewson and Albert Schultz, and "Corner Gas" stars Eric Peterson and Janet Wright.

Trudeau, the son of former prime minister Pierre Trudeau, wasn't the only political offspring featured on the broadcast.

The assembled crowd tittered as Trudeau introduced a report by Ben Mulroney - son of former prime minister Brian Mulroney - from the Giller Light fundraising event at a downtown brewery.

The Giller was created in 1994 by businessman Jack Rabinovitch in memory of his late wife, literary journalist Doris Giller. It honours the best in Canadian fiction.

Last year, Scotiabank got on board and the purse was increased from $25,000 to $50,000 (runners-up get $2,500 each) - a veritable king's ransom for most writers.

Even a mention on the prize's short list can have a big impact on book sales, a phenomenon that some have dubbed "the Giller effect."

BookNet Canada, which tracks book sales across the country, says that trend has continued this year, with "De Niro's Game" - Hage's debut novel about two friends dealing with the civil war in Lebanon - showing the biggest jump in sales.

It has also been nominated for a Governor General's Award.

That said, at least one bookseller says this year's short list - which includes two short story collections and two novels translated from French - has not been terribly popular with customers.

"We're just not selling the books," said Heidi Hallett, owner of Frog Hollow Books in Halifax. "Within our loyal clientele, short stories are always problematic, as are translations. They're just not the first things people go for."

She speculates that Hage's book has sold well partly because of the title, a reference to the game of Russian roulette played by Robert De Niro's character in the film "The Deer Hunter."

The task of choosing this year's Giller winner fell to a jury made up of Munro, Newfoundland writer Michael Winter and former governor general Adrienne Clarkson.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Reports: Softbank, News Corp. to launch Japanese version of MySpace

TOKYO (AP) - Japanese Internet services company Softbank and Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. are expected to announce as early as this week the launch of a Japanese version of the popular Internet social networking site MySpace, news reports said Monday. The two companies will each provide half the approximately one billion yen (US$8.48 million) investment to form MySpace Japan, which will operate the new site, the Nihon Keizai business daily said, without identifying its sources.

Kyodo News agency carried a similar report, also without identifying its sources.

Softbank Corp. President Masayoshi Son and News Corp.'s Chairman Rupert Murdoch are expected to hold talks soon to finalize the arrangement, the Nihon Keizai said.

Softbank official refused to comment on the reports.

News Corp. became the owner of MySpace in 2005 when it bought Los Angeles-based Intermix Media Inc. for US$580 million.

The new venture comes amid rapid growth in Japan's social networking sites, which are thought to have more than 10 million users, the Nihon Keizai said.

Softbank hopes partnering with News Corp. will help it expand its own business, the paper said. Softbank subsidiary Yahoo Japan Corp. provides social networking sites, but Softbank has not involved itself in the sites' operations, the paper added.

Softbank is Yahoo Japan's largest stockholder, with 41.9 per cent of the company's shares. Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Yahoo Inc. owns 33.4 per cent of the remaining shares.

Murdoch was scheduled to give a speech in Tokyo later Monday on the economic and political challenges facing Asia.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Attacks on B.C. women deepen focus on domestic violence in ethnic communities

SURREY, B.C. (CP) - A woman who said her husband has beaten and abused her for 20 years said she didn't tell him she would speak at a public meeting Thursday about family violence in the Indo-Canadian community. "If I can improve one girl's life, it is worth my husband's anger," the woman told 1,500 people who packed a banquet hall in this Vancouver suburb.

Speaking in Punjabi and English, she recounted 20 years of punches, slaps and taunts from the man with whom she still lives.

She echoed other South Asian women who rose to tell their stories, saying it's time to end the shame that forced them into silence.

"I want other women to come forward," she said. "If they don't, their friends, their relatives, their children will suffer the way I suffered."

The meeting was called in the wake of the killings of two Indo-Canadian women and critical wounding of a third in the Vancouver area in less than two weeks.

"Girls have been walking into our studios with their complaints, with their violence, with their abuse," said Ashiana Khan, the station manager for Radio India who organized the forum.

"They did not know how to get help, they did not know where to go, they did not know who to talk to."

Narinder Rihal, a support worker at Surrey Women's Centre, said part of the challenge in assisting abused women in any cultural community is their reluctance to seek help from strangers.

"They are discouraged from seeking help from outside the family," said Rihal. "The family does try to help, but sometimes the family is part of the conflict, they can't always see what the real core issue is.

"They are trained and raised to believe that if there is a problem within the family it should be talked about within the family."

Rihal said women often believe that they can't seek help from people outside their own culture because they won't be understood.

"That's not true," Rihal said. "Domestic violence is not a South Asian problem. It is a problem globally."

But British Columbia's attorney-general said there is a bias within South Asian culture that underpins the violence.

Wally Oppal said there is inequality between men and women in the Indian culture, citing the dowry system where women are treated as property.

Oppal, who is Indo-Canadian, said boys are treated preferentially to girls.

Oppal said the community has been in denial for a long time.

"Nobody likes to acknowledge the fact there may be violence in their own home," he said. "I think it's time that the community did that and for that reason I think the forum is a very good idea."


There was little reluctance among those who attended Thursday's meeting, including the family of one of the slain women.

Maldeep Sandhu, whose cousin Navreet Waraich was stabbed to death Sunday, pleaded that the victim's husband Jatinder, charged with second-degree murder, not be released on bail.

They also urged federal immigration officials to allow Navreet's parents to come to Canada and care for their infant grandson.

On Oct. 20, a nurse from Coquitlam, B.C., Gurjeet Kaur Ghuman, was riding in a car with her estranged husband when he shot her in the head and then killed himself.

She remains in critical condition in hospital.

Days later, the burned body of Surrey, B.C., teacher Manjit Panghali was found in suburban Delta. She was four months pregnant.

No one has been arrested in her death.

Generations of South Asian women rose and told stories of abuse they had suffered at the hands of their husbands.

One woman, her voice breaking, recounted how her husband choked her on the bed as their 17-day-old son lay nearby.

Another recalled being left bloodied, her jaw broken, with her two young daughters only steps away.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Despite nuclear tensions, visitors flock to Korea's DMZ

PANMUNJOM, Korea (AP) - More than half a century of fragile peace between North and South Korea has produced one of the world's most unusual tourist attractions. As global leaders struggle to strike a balance between punishing the communist-led North for its Oct. 9 nuclear test and engaging the volatile state in arms talks, hundreds of tourists are still flocking to the front lines each week hoping for a glimpse across the last Cold War frontier.

Littered with landmines and encased in razor wire, the 250-kilometre-long Demilitarized Zone between the rival Koreas is among the most popular sights for overseas visitors to South Korea.

At least 10 companies offer daily bus trips to the DMZ from the capital, Seoul, offering 24-hour phone reservation lines, free hotel pickups and customized tours in English, Japanese and Korean.

Colourful brochures scattered in hotel lobbies and tourist information kiosks across the capital promise "a real eye-opening experience" that will "leave you with a dramatic sense of the tremendous tragedy of separated families, the division of the peninsula and the hopes for reunification."

Technically still at war since their 1950-53 war ended in a ceasefire rather than a peace treaty, the two Koreas are strictly separated by the four-kilometre-wide strip that is often called the world's most heavily fortified border.

"There is no other country in the world where people with the same nationality are divided, aiming guns at each other. So this makes it a unique sightseeing destination," said Choi Suk- bum, a spokesman for the Korea Tourism Organization, the South's main tourism body.

On a trip this week, some two dozen American, Canadian and European tourists handed over about C$47 each to make the 53-kilometre journey north from Seoul.

As the bus rolls into the first DMZ checkpoint, where a South Korean guard wearing full combat gear and reflective sunglasses carefully checks each passenger's passport, a large billboard warns of landmines ahead.

Each tourist is asked to sign a release which states that their visit "will entail entry into a hostile area, and possibility of injury or death as a direct result of enemy action."

Everyone signs.

Inside the zone, the tour stops at the truce village of Panmunjom, a bleak cluster of blue huts that is jointly administered by the U.S.-led United Nations Command and North Korea, and a military observation post from which the Northern village of Kijungdong can be seen.

Tourists here are strictly controlled - told where to look, where to stand, where they can and cannot take photographs - for fear of provoking the North Korean soldiers who keep a constant vigil over the invisible demarcation line. The DMZ has been the site of numerous violent confrontations over the decades, but there have been no fatal clashes since the 1980s.

At an obligatory stop at a gift store, visitors can take their pick from a range of DMZ kitsch such as hats, T-shirts, tea towels, key rings, golf balls emblazoned with the UN logo, child-sized combat fatigues and boxes of barbed wire said to have been removed from the zone on the 50th anniversary of the ceasefire.

An hour or so later, the tour pulls into a parking lot filled with at least 10 other buses. Here, tourists are instructed to don bright yellow hard hats before descending about 75 metres underground to explore part of an extensive tunnel presumably built by North Korea in the 1970s to sta ge an invasion into the South. Crammed with tourists and averaging barely two metres high and two metres across, the tunnel feels dank and claustrophobic.

Tours to the DMZ run nearly every day of the week, and operators say they have not seen a drop in visitors since the North's underground nuclear test last month.

"I think you could call it a spectacle, maybe a once-in-a-lifetime thing," said Paul Britton, 27, of Vancouver, explaining why he chose to attend the tour. "Like people watching the Berlin Wall come down. Maybe this is the next wall."

"It's that kind of secretive, unknown peak into North Korea," agreed Joel Hickson, 35, an applications engineer from Austin, Texas, who interrupted his five-day business trip to visit the DMZ. "There are just very few places like that left in the world."

Hickson admitted the thought of visiting the DMZ just a few weeks after Pyongyang's nuclear test was "kind of intimidating, but once you're here it feels safe."

The Korea Tourism Organization says it does not keep statistics on how many foreigners attend the DMZ tour each year. But one of the more popular companies, Korea Travel Bureau, estimates it takes as many as 12,000 visitors to the zone annually.

Another popular tour is run by the United Service Organization, the nonprofit group best known for its star-studded shows that entertain U.S. troops abroad, which takes about 8,000 mostly U.S. tourists a year.

The USO has been running tours to the DMZ since the early 1970s. It now runs two to three trips every week, "and they're always full," said USO Korea's Executive Director Stan Perry.

"There is a sense of being able to visit and see something that many others around the world only hear about," he said. "If you think about this, two countries separated by a thin line, it's amazing."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Jackie Chan says his rusty English remains a handicap

HONG KONG (AP) - It may be a well-worn cliche, but for Hong Kong star Jackie Chan, action really does speak louder than words, at least when it comes to English dialogue. The actor is often frustrated by his inability to deliver his English lines smoothly during shooting of "Rush Hour 3," according to an entry on his website Saturday.

"To me, action scenes are so easy, but dialogue scenes drive me crazy. The directors and producers want me to speak everything perfectly," he wrote while filming in Los Angeles.

"Sometimes when a word is in the past tense or plural, I get confused. It is hard to remember lengthy dialogue and still sound natural.

"I have to say my lines over and over again until I get it right," he said. "I want to ask them 'Can I speak Jackie Chan English?' "

Chan is a prolific actor, but he has said his roles in the United States are limited because of his grasp of English. Chan dedicated one diary entry to co-star Chris Tucker, thanking him for helping with the dialogue. Chan also said he was grateful to director Brett Ratner who tried to simplify the lines.

In the "Rush Hour" series, Chan plays a Hong Kong police officer and Tucker portrays his Los Angeles counterpart, with the movie's humour drawing on cultural differences between the two. "Rush Hour 3" is due for release next year.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Domestic abuse hidden among Indo-Canadians: forum

CBC News

More than 1,500 people heard harrowing stories of domestic beatings of women in the Indo-Canadian community at a forum in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday night.

They packed a banquet hall to talk about the problem, which has gained urgency in recent weeks after two killings and an attempted murder, all involving Canadian women of South Asian descent. Radio India, a Punjabi radio station based in Surrey, hosted the forum.

Several women said isolation, shame and cultural barriers have hidden the problem of domestic violence in the community. Political leaders, including B.C. Attorney General Wally Oppal, listened to their stories and promised to take action.

Babita Chumber spoke of concealing the beatings she suffered in her marriage out of a sense of shame.

Babita Chumber, who spoke at the forum, said her six-year marriage started with high hopes but quickly became a nightmare.

"My husband would spit on me, kick me, emotionally degrade me. I would go to work with bruises. Pieces of hair would be out of my head and I would cover it up because of the shame that is involved," she said.

Kavinder Lehal said she was beaten and threatened with knives and a gun during her 11-year marriage. Lehail said many South Asian women stay in abusive relationships out of fear they will bring shame to their families.

"You're not shaming your husband or his family. He shames his family when he raises his hand on you. He shames his family when he beats you up," she said.

Oppal, who is Indo-Canadian, said the gathering shows the south Asian community is coming to terms with a problem that has been hushed up for years.

"Most of this is acknowledging the fact this exists. There is denial in the community, face-saving," he said.

Oppal said he hopes the forum, where so many women told their stories, will give others the courage to come forward.

In the last two weeks, two married Indo-Canadian mothers have been found dead in the Lower Mainland. Navreet Kaur Waraich was stabbed to death in Surrey, and Manjit Panghali's burned body was found along a highway near a busy container terminal in Delta.

In another incident, Gurjeet Kaur Ghuman was shot in the face by her estranged husband in Port Coquitlam. He died after turning the gun on himself. She remains in critical condition.

TV tops in culture spending: StatsCan

CBC News

Canadian spending on culture was steady between 1999 and 2004, with cable and satellite television accounting for almost a third of the total, Statistics Canada reported Thursday.

Average family spending of $1,450 on cultural goods and services in 2004 was unchanged since 1999 after accounting for inflation, the agency said.

Cultural spending grew more slowly than outlays on other items, however, such as housing, health and communications, including cellphones and high-speed internet.

As a result, cultural spending fell to 2.9 per cent of average household expenditures in 2004, down from 3.1 per cent in 1999, according to the 2004 survey of household spending.

Cable and satellite television took more of the cultural budget over the five years, rising by $130 per family to $462 in 2004. That's nearly a third of the total, up from a quarter in 1999.

After television, several items rank closely in terms of spending, all accounting for about eight per cent of the total.

The average family spent $116 on pre-recorded DVDs, CDs, and audio and video cassettes in 2004, though the amount fell from 1999.

Movie admissions ranked third at $112, reporting a big gain on a small rise in the number of admissions and a big jump in average ticket prices, to $7.47 from $5.78. Spending on textbooks, which is counted separately from other books and magazines, came in at $111. "Other" books, including fiction and non-fiction, came next at $106.

Newspapers have been losing ground, falling to $99 in 2004 from $108 in 1999. Study author Erika Dugas suggested the increasing use of the internet for news and sports information may have caused the drop.

Spending on live performances rose by almost a third to $89 in 2004. "Not only did households spend more, on average, but slightly more households reported expenditures on live performing arts," the report said.

Magazines and periodicals fell a dollar to an average $61 expenditure, while an increasing number of titles has led to stiff competition for the reader's time and money.

On average, Canadian families spend as much on visual arts — paintings, drawings, carvings, vases and antiques — as they do on magazines. But the average figure is misleading, because only 10 per cent of households reported those types of spending.

"Without a doubt, buying art or antiques is an activity pursued by a select few households, who spend proportionally larger amounts when buying such works," the report said.

Spending on photo finishing has taken "a huge decrease, the impact of digital cameras," Dugas said.

Oliver Stone to shoot short film for Beijing 2008

BEIJING (Reuters) - Oliver Stone, director of "JFK" and other films that have courted controversy for their political content, will shoot a short film to promote Beijing ahead of the 2008 Olympics, organizers said on Thursday.

The five-minute film would form a "promotional video for cultural exchange between Beijing and the world" and be shown on television, in cinemas and on aircraft in China and abroad, the organizers said in a statement.

"Today, many peoples of the world can live in harmony, and China plays an important role," Stone told the Beijing News.

"China and the United States are two big countries that should have more interaction. My goal in shooting this Olympic short film also lies in this -- the need to build a harmonious international society."

The 60-year-old Oscar winner is the third director invited to capture impressions of Beijing as it prepares for the Olympics.

Italian director Giuseppe Tornatore, whose 1989 movie "Cinema Paradiso" won an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, and Oscar-nominated Iranian director Majid Majidi will also release short films, organizers said.

Stone toured Beijing this week to promote "World Trade Center," a movie about the September 11 2001 attacks in the U.S.

Originally set for release last month, "World Trade Center" and blockbuster "Miami Vice" were delayed after China's culture ministry declared October a month for home-made films, most of which featured patriotic and revolutionary themes.

© Reuters 2006. All rights reserved.

Earlier the better for N.Korea talks, says China

By Chris Buckley

BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Thursday it wanted an early resumption of six-party talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear programme, and a Japanese official said Pyongyang had been badly hit by a U.S. financial crackdown.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said no date had been set for the next session of the long-stalled talks, but he made it clear Beijing was keen for a quick restart.

"If we're prepared and each side agrees, then sooner the better," he told a regular news briefing.

Thursday's remarks were the first official Chinese comment since North Korea agreed on Tuesday to return to the six-party talks, hosted by Beijing since 2003 and grouping the two Koreas, China, the United States, Japan and Russia.

Washington has said it will "address" North Korea's concerns about a U.S. clampdown on its external financing in the next round of talks. Pyongyang had boycotted the process since November last year in protest at those restrictions.

A senior Japanese intelligence official told Reuters on Thursday the financial crackdown had been squeezing Pyongyang.

"I believe they are having a considerable effect on North Korea's economy," said Takashi Ohizumi, director-general of Tokyo's Public Security Intelligence Agency. "The flow of funds into North Korea has been blocked to a great extent."

SANCTIONS STAY

Ohizumi said Pyongyang, which carried out its first nuclear test on October 9, might now try to use its newly proven capability as an extra bargaining chip, so countries must keep sanctions in place.

In Washington, a Bush administration official told Reuters on Wednesday that there was little "wiggle room" over the financial restrictions, imposed after U.S. Treasury officials accused North of counterfeiting American dollars and trafficking illegal drugs.

"I think we're going in with a non-compromising position on this, but there is a willingness to talk about these issues," another senior U.S. official told Reuters.

Chinese spokesman Liu confirmed that China would continue observing the U.N. sanctions.

North Korea's nuclear test drew worldwide condemnation and United Nations sanctions under Resolution 1718. China was stinging in its condemnation of the test and gave crucial backing to the U.N. sanctions targeting trade with North Korea in large conventional weapons and luxury goods.

"Each country has a duty to strictly and responsibly implement it and China is no exception," Liu said of the resolution.

ECONOMIC PINCH

North Korea's surprise decision to return to negotiations has raised speculation that China had pressured Pyongyang by squeezing the struggling fortress state's economic lifelines.

Chinese trade data released on Monday showed that China sent no crude oil at all to the energy-starved North in September -- before the nuclear test, but after Pyongyang had ignited regional anger by test-firing missiles.

But Liu denied Beijing had pressured its neighbor into concessions. "China has never approved of using pressure and sanctions to solve problems," he said.

Japanese intelligence chief Ohizumi left no doubt, however, that sanctions and economic isolation were pinching North Korea's secretive leaders, and public disaffection there was rising as the economy soured.

"The gap between rich and poor has been deepening. There are signs in several areas that the public view of the establishment is declining," he said.

In Seoul, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun told foreign executives on Thursday that North Korea had not tipped the balance of military power on the Korean peninsula in its favor by developing nuclear weapons and conducting its first test.

"Will the military balance be broken to a degree North Korea will unilaterally wage aggression? I don't think it has been broken yet," Roh said. "We will always maintain superiority."

(Additional reporting by Jack Kim in Seoul, Teruaki Ueno in Tokyo, and Carol Giacomo and Arshad Mohammed in Washington)

© Reuters 2006. All rights reserved.

South Korean pianist wins Honens competition

(CBC) - A South Korean musician has captured the Calgary-based Honens International Piano Competition, one of the world's top prizes for young pianists.

Minsoo Sohn was awarded the prize, which comes with a cash award of $35,000, after beating out four other finalists, all of whom competed Thursday and Friday at Calgary's Jack Singer Concert Hall in the EPCOR Centre for the Performing Arts.

"It's been an extraordinary celebration of a new generation of musicians," Stephen McHolm, executive director of the Calgary-based competition, said in a statement.

"These young artists take the best of Calgary to the world."

The Honens competition is sponsored through donations from Calgary corporations. In addition to the cash award, Sohn receives a three-season artistic and career development program valued at more than $100,000.

"I'm just very, very grateful," Sohn told the Calgary Herald. "Every ounce of my blood, skin and passion was in the music."

Sohn, 30, who also plays the organ, studied at the New England Conservatory of Music. He has performed with orchestras in South Korea, Europe, Israel and across the United States.

The chair of the judging panel, William Aide, called it a "very close race."

The other four finalists were rated:

- Second Laureate: Hinrich Alpers, Germany ($25,000).

- Third Laureate: Hong Xu, China ($17,500).

- Fourth Finalist: Spencer Myer, United States ($6,000).

- Fifth Finalist: Serhiy Salov, Ukraine ($6,000).

Salov is a Montreal resident who won the First Grand Prize and the People's Award at the 2004 Montreal International Musical Competition.

Established in 1991, Honens competition is held every three years to seek out young pianists who demonstrate versatility, individuality and a keen musical awareness.

© the CBC, 2006

Internet spending reaches $7.9B: Statistics Canada

(CBC) - Canadians went on an internet shopping spree in 2005, spending $7.9 billion on goods and services, including travel arrangements, reading material and electronics, Statistics Canada said Wednesday.

Nearly seven million adults bought something online in 2005, representing 41 per cent of Canadians who used the internet, according to the federal agency's new Canadian internet use survey.

The purchases represent just a fraction of the $762 billion in personal spending in the survey period, Statistics Canada said.

While the figures suggest online spending has more than doubled from the previous survey, which showed $3.2 billion in transactions in 2003, the figures cannot be directly compared, Statistics Canada said.

"The survey instrument has changed so that a direct comparison cannot be made between 2003 and 2005," the federal agency's Larry McKeown told CBC News Online.

The methods used in the latest survey were changed to conform more closely to international standards, Statistics Canada said.

In August, the agency released its first part of the latest internet use survey. It found about two-thirds of Canadians - about 7.9 million families or an estimated 16.8 million adults - with home internet access went online daily.

© the CBC, 2006

Tokyo, London stock exchanges discussing possible co-operation

TOKYO (AP) - Japan's main bourse, the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is in talks with the London Stock Exchange over possible areas for co-operation, a spokesman for the Tokyo exchange said Monday. The two exchanges have been exploring areas in which they can work together, but they are not at the point of announcing any firm arrangement, Tokyo exchange spokesman Satoshi Futagi said.

The news comes weeks after the Tokyo bourse said it was in talks with the New York Stock Exchange over co-operating in a range of areas and a possible capital tie-up.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

MLB wants season openers in China

By Alastair Himmer

TOKYO (Reuters) - China could soon emulate Japan by hosting Major League Baseball games -- half a century after the sport was banned in the country by Chairman Mao.

MLB officials are anxious to unearth baseball's version of Yao Ming before China hosts the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

"Our goal is to open the season in China -- with regular-season games -- in the very near future," MLB president Bob DuPuy told Reuters on Thursday.

"We think that China provides enormous opportunity to us and that in a very short period of time China can do for Major League Baseball what Japan has done for Major League Baseball."

MLB's marketing strategists are looking to strike while the iron is hot in the build-up to Beijing and have sent a delegation to China to explore the possibility of regular-season games.

"We have a party visiting China while we are here for the all-star tournament," DuPuy said on the sidelines of a five-game exhibition series between MLB and Japanese all-stars in Japan.

"China hosting the Olympics and what is, at least for the moment, the last appearance of baseball in the Olympics, makes it that much more imperative that we establish a beachhead there as soon as possible."

DuPuy added: "We're trying to develop something in China similar to the relationship we have now with Japan."

SUCCESSFUL TRANSITION

Japan hosted MLB season openers in 2000 and 2004 while two games between Seattle and Oakland scheduled for 2003 were moved back to the United States because of the war in Iraq.

Japanese players such as Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki and New York Yankees slugger Hideki Matsui have also made a successful transition to life in the majors.

South Korea has likewise produced top-class players of the caliber of San Diego Padres pitcher Chan-Ho Park while Taiwan's Chien-Ming Wang currently pitches for the Yankees.

Chairman Mao banned baseball in China in the 1960s, calling it a bourgeois indulgence of the rich, but DuPuy said it was only a matter of time before a Chinese player blazed a path to the majors.

"If you're one in a million in China there's 1,300 of you," he smiled. "So there have to be very talented baseball players in China and very talented athletes who will be able to showcase their baseball skills."

(Additional reporting by Dan Sloan)

© Reuters 2006. All rights reserved.

Nintendo to launch 62 games by year-end for Wii

(CBC) - Nintendo says it will release 62 games within five weeks of launching its new Wii video game console on Nov. 19, including 32 new titles and 30 classic games.

The classic games, which will include titles for earlier Nintendo and Sega consoles, will be available for download through its online service, Nintendo Co., Ltd. said in a statement late Tuesday.

The Wii will also be compatible with more than 530 titles from the Japanese company's previous console offering, the Nintendo GameCube.

New titles will include a new instalment of Nintendo's adventure series The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and French developer Ubisoft Inc.'s exclusive first-person action title, Red Steel.

The Wii will also feature the latest in U.S. software publisher Electronic Arts Ltd.'s football franchise, Madden NFL '07, and racing sequel, Need for Speed: Carbon.

With the Wii, Nintendo has eschewed the race for high-definition graphics between Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360, launched in 2005, and Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 3, which debuts in North America on Nov. 17.

Instead, the Wii features a motion-sensitive controller that the company says will open new possibilities for gaming and accessibility to a broader audience.

Sony has said that it will launch the PS3 with 22 new games.

© the CBC, 2006

WHO slams Chinese Ministry of Agriculture for not sharing bird flu info, viruses

(CP) - The World Health Organization aimed a broadside at the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture on Wednesday, blasting it for not alerting the global community about a new variant of the worrisome H5N1 avian flu virus, for hoarding virus samples and for not doing enough to contain the spread of H5N1 in poultry. In an interview from Beijing, the WHO's top representative for China also suggested the ministry may be selectively reporting findings of H5N1 in poultry, only advising international authorities of large outbreaks.

"What we sense from the Ministry of Agriculture over here is that they are reporting the major outbreaks," Dr. Henk Bekedam said. "They might not report if they find here and there a virus."

Under international rules, countries are required to report any discovery of a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus such as H5N1 to the World Organization for Animal Health - known as the OIE.

The critical comments - from both Bekedam and Dr. Julie Hall, an infectious diseases expert in WHO's China office - were triggered by the publication earlier this week of a scientific article outlining the emergence of a new variant of the H5N1 virus.

The paper, written by scientists at the University of Hong Kong and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., reported on ongoing surveillance the group conducts in live poultry markets in six provinces in southern China.

The researchers said the new variant was first isolated in Fujian province in March 2005 and since then has rapidly crowded out other subgroups of H5N1 viruses in southern China, spreading as well to Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong and Laos. It has triggered human cases in China and Thailand.

The WHO officials were not pleased to learn about the Fujian-like variant in the pages of a scientific journal, especially as the agriculture ministry conducts a similar surveillance program.

"It's so sad that we haven't got that information or those viruses from the Ministry of Agriculture and we have to rely on research groups in Hong Kong and the United States to provide that information," Hall said.

The fact that the agriculture ministry didn't inform the WHO would appear to suggest that it either knew about the variant and withheld the information or that its surveillance wasn't thorough enough to find the new viruses, the WHO officials agreed.

"This . . . (journal) article very clearly says: If you really look for it, systematically, you will find it," Bekedam said. "That is what is needed."

The findings are proof China's efforts to contain the virus need to be kicked up a notch, he added.

China's policy of mass vaccination of domestic chickens, ducks and geese has cut the number of poultry outbreaks, but it has also made it more difficult to spot where the virus is still spreading. That's because mass die offs of unvaccinated birds was a clear signal H5N1 was in an area.

With many, but not all, birds vaccinated it's much harder to pinpoint where the virus is still transmitting.

"It (the paper) also confirms what we have been thinking: the current control measures have not been sufficient to really suppress H5N1," Bekedam said.

"Far more work needs to be done. The vaccination campaign alone is not sufficient."

He added that the country's poultry vaccine manufacturers should urgently update the strains in their vaccines to include the Fujian-like virus - if they are not already doing so.

The WHO officials also revealed that the agriculture ministry is still dragging its feet on the issue of sharing sample H5N1 viruses isolated from poultry.

The last time China shared agricultural viruses was in June 2004, Hall said.

By contrast, the WHO officials said, the Ministry of Health has been forthcoming, sharing five viruses isolated from human cases in the past year. Bekedam said Health Ministry officials also rapidly share with WHO scientists and their collaborators the genetic blueprints of human viruses the ministry sequences.

The agriculture ministry promised last March that it would share a batch of agricultural viruses. When it emerged over the summer that China hadn't yet delivered on the pledge, officials complained U.S. paperwork was blocking their efforts to export the viruses to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta.

By late September both China and the CDC said those obstacles had been hurdled and the viruses were apparently cleared to go. But a month later, those viruses haven't reached their destination.

"As far as we understand, as of two days ago, the viruses have not physically left China," Bekedam said.

"It's really beyond comprehension to us."

The laboratories that conduct global influenza surveillance for the WHO need sample viruses to track the characteristics of H5N1 and to ensure that prototype human vaccines are up to date. Changes in viral characteristics can render old vaccine strains ineffective, requiring newer versions to be made.

One of those sample viruses shared by the Ministry of Health was used to make a seed strain for a human vaccine the WHO thinks might be effective against the Fujian-like strain, Hall said. But she noted without sample Fujian-like viruses to test it against, the WHO cannot be sure.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

E-shoppers spending more, but worry about privacy: StatsCan

WINNIPEG (CP) - More Canadians are shopping online, but many e-shoppers remain concerned about privacy, says a Statistics Canada report released Wednesday.
One retail consultant specializing in e-commerce says secure websites have made Internet shopping much safer, but a bigger obstacle remains. "If you look at the kind of choice you have as an online shopper in Canada, it's quite limited," said Jim Okamura, a retail consultant with J.C. Williams Group Ltd.

"It just hasn't been as much of a strategic priority, but in the U.S. this is one of the hottest issues."

Canadians ordered just over $7.9 billion worth of goods and services over the Internet for personal and household consumption in 2005.

But Statistics Canada says despite the fact Canadians placed almost 50 million orders online, e-commerce still represented a small fraction of the $762 billion spent on goods and services last year.

About three-quarters of adult Canadians who placed online orders in 2005 reported paying directly over the Internet with a credit or debit card for some or all of their purchases.

However, the survey results suggested most e-shoppers remained concerned about Internet privacy and credit-card use.

Privacy worries were also listed as a key reason many Canadian shoppers rejected online buying, according to a recent study by the J.C. Williams Group. Fraud fears topped the list.

Sears Canada (TSX:SCC) has a detailed privacy policy on its main website, which includes a pledge not to share personal information with anyone without the customer's consent.

Spokesman Vincent Power said the company has built an extensive customer database dating back to the start of its catalogue business.

"I would think that a lot of the fears when it comes to sharing private information has to do with the fact customers may be dealing with new entities in the Internet world," said Power, director of corporate communications.

"One thing our customers tell us is there is a big trust factor with us."

Visa Canada says it hears more queries from customers about fraud than identity theft.

Spokeswoman Tania Freedman said the company has added extra security such as having merchants ask online shoppers to provide the three numbers printed on the signature line.

"Our main concern is protecting the integrity of the cardholder data," said Freedman.

"If you have someone's credit card number you might be able to commit fraud, but at the end of the day the cardholder is never libel for that fraud."

She said Visa can't know how merchants are using personal information they collect from online orders, but the company would expect them to adhere to all privacy laws.

The Statistics Canada survey found travel services such as hotel reservations and car rentals were the most common type of order, followed closely by books, magazines and digital products.

Okamura said some of his Canadian clients have seen significant growth in their online business, albeit on a small base.

"It's not uncommon for us to see 50 to 60 per cent year-over-year growth in the e-commerce channel," said Okamura, a Canadian working in the company's Chicago office.

Power says Sears' online business in Canada is still "in the single digits" as a percentage of overall sales and doesn't come close to matching its catalogue business.

But he says the company sees potential for further expansion on the Internet, especially as a tool to promote mid-season sales of surplus stock, or when there's no time to ship the goods to stores or publish a new catalogue.

"Speed is a real big factor there," said Power. "The Internet provides us with almost what you'd call an outlet store."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

MySpace cracks down on unauthorized music uploads

(CBC) - MySpace.com has announced it will use so-called "audio fingerprinting" technology to identify unauthorized uploads and is threatening to permanently ban members who put copyrighted music files on the site.

The popular social networking site, owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., said on Monday that it will filter audio files uploaded by members through a music database by Gracenote Inc. of Emeryville, Calif.

Gracenote's database contains about 55 million music tracks and eight million "audio waveform fingerprints," the company says. Gracenote was formerly known as the CD Data Base or CDDB.com.

Myspace members can upload music, video and other media files to personal web pages hosted by the social networking site. The files can then be streamed over the internet through a media player built into the page.

"MySpace is staunchly committed to protecting artists' rights, whether those artists are on major labels or are independent acts," said Chris DeWolfe, MySpace chief executive and co-founder.

The recording industry has targeted popular social networking sites such as MySpace and online video sharing sites like YouTube for allegedly allowing their members to upload copyrighted music.

In some cases, recording labels have sued to prevent music from being used as a soundtrack for user-made videos posted online.

YouTube, Inc. recently purged thousands of files over complaints of copyright infringement, Earlier this year, the company implemented a royalty tracking system to give copyright owners greater control over the content uploaded to the site.

Google Inc. bought YouTube for $1.65 billion US earlier this month.

With files from the Canadian Press

© the CBC, 2006

Services and goods boosted economy in August by 0.3 per cent, Stats Can says

TORONTO (CP) - Gains in the services and goods industries boosted Canadian economic activity by 0.3 per cent in August - its best showing in six months - but economists warn growth could slow down in the coming months, dragged down by a weakening U.S. economy. "With the U.S. economy continuing to slow in the months to come, we'll see the exports side of the Canadian economy continue to take a hit, while the domestic economy surges ahead," said Steve Chan, an economist with TD Economics.

"On balance, you look for the Canadian economy to operate below its potential."

The expected slowdown in the U.S., he added, will "slacken demand global demand for commodities, which will bring oil prices down slightly," to about US$55 a barrel, taking some shine off Canada's booming commodity sector.

Statistics Canada said Tuesday that the service industries were up 0.4 per cent, while goods-producing industries rose 0.2 per cent, boosted by the energy sector.

Natural gas production and transportation were among the main engines of growth in the energy sector, which advanced 0.7 per cent, helped by rising U.S. demand and the replenishment of inventories with the approach of winter.

Crude oil production and transportation rose modestly in August after a strong increase in July, while oil and gas exploration declined 4.1 per cent following two months of significant increases.

The construction sector also declined in August, for a fourth consecutive month, on decreases in residential and non-residential construction.

Chan said those decreases occurred because "while our housing market is good, it is cooling slightly and that's where you see some of the slowing in non-residential and residential construction activity."

The manufacturing sector, which has struggled in the past, was essentially unchanged for the second straight month, while wholesale trade grew 1.7 per cent in August, as growth of renovation activities boosted sales of building materials.

"Even with the solid gain in August, this hardly represents the start of a new, bold trend for Canadian GDP growth," said BMO economist Douglas Porter.

"We expect growth to struggle to stay above the two per cent threshold for the next few quarters, undercut by a struggling manufacturing sector," he said, adding that the "slow but steady deterioration in the previously booming construction sector" was another drag on the outlook.

In a separate report Tuesday, CIBC World Markets said the "immense gap" in economic growth between the resource-rich provinces and those more closely tied to the manufacturing sector will remain firmly in place next year.

Alberta is expected to lead the country in real gross domestic product growth next year, and is likely to record a 5.5 per cent real GDP gain in 2007. Ontario will pull up the rear this year and next, with growth rates of 1.4 per cent in 2006 and 1.8 per cent in 2007, CIBC said.

Among the Atlantic provinces, Nova Scotia is on pace to record a real GDP gain of 2.3 per cent on the back of consumer and housing driven gains, while Prince Edward Island and Quebec will hover near the lows, at 1.9 and 1.8 per cent growth in 2007 respectively.

BMO said it expects Tuesday's Statistic Canada outlook will lead the Bank of Canada to cut interest rates, while RBC senior economist Dawn Desjardins says the combination of an elevated core inflation rate and slower pace of economic growth "will likely see the Bank hold the overnight rate at 4.25 per cent until late in 2007."

Chan, who also believes the Bank of Canada will likely cut interest rates to stimulate the economy, said it should ramp back up towards the second half of next year, coming above it's potential by the fourth quarter of 2007.

"This is definitely not going to be any outright contraction or recession," he said.

"It's just a soft patch and we look for a soft landing in the U.S. economy to translate to a bit of slower times over in Canada."

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Concert: Vithal Rao + Kiran Ahluwalia

November 16

Roundhouse Community Centre
181 Roundhouse Mews
Yaletown, Vancouver

doors at 7:30 pm
show at 8 pm

$25 at the door
$22 in advance
$20 for members of Alliance Française

Alliance Française de Vancouver is proud to announce the first Vancouver appearance of one of the grand masters of Indian vocal tradition, Pandit Vithal Rao presented and accompanied by Juno Award-winning singer Kiran Ahluwalia,

Kiran is known primarily as a singer of ghazals, exquisitely-crafted love poems set to music. This fall she’s bringing to Canada her guru, singer and composer Pandit Vithal Rao - revered as one of the living masters of the ghazal. It is Vithal Rao’s first visit to this country in over 30 years.

Two of India’s finest musicians, tabla-player Sardar Khan and violinist Thana Devi. will accompany Vithal Rao. Kiran hosts the evening, and also sings – on her own, and in a duet or two with her guru. In addition, she’ll tell stories from the extraordinary and colourful life of Vithal Rao, who spent his early years as a court musician in the palace of the last prince of Hyderabad. There will be a Q&A following the performance.

Vithal Rao receives regular visits from the leading ghazal singers of Bombay, the hub of India’s music business, as well as from ghazal poets seeking his advice on the composition of lyrics. He’s the quintessential incredible artist and terrible businessman - never pushing his own career or making a commercial recording until last year. Despite this, many of his tunes have become contemporary classics.

Now in his 70s, Vithal Rao is a living legend – one of only four or five masters the ghazal, and the last surviving court musician of Hyderabad. He’s a part of India’s history and a link with centuries of tradition.

Exhibition: Memories of Humankind

Chinese Cultural Centre and Museum
50 E. Pender Street, Vancouver

The Alliance Française and The Chinese Cultural Centre present a beautiful exhibit of photographs of the traditional life of ordinary and extraordinary peoples taken by the winners of the 2002 China Folklore Photographic Association’s Humanity Photo Award competition under UNESCO auspices in 1998. 1000 photographs will be displayed.

Grand Opening: November 4th at 4 pm
Tuesday - Sunday 11:00 – 17:00
Closed Mondays and holidays

Canada could face penalties under Kyoto Protocol

OTTAWA (CP) - Canada is liable to penalties and international censure for failing to respect its commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, says a legal opinion made public Tuesday. A little-noted article in the Kyoto treaty required countries to show, by 2005, that they had made "demonstrable progress" in meeting their commitments under the protocol, but Canada has not done so.

"I conclude therefore that Canada is in current violation of Article 3.2 of the Kyoto Protocol," says the opinion, written for Friends of the Earth-Canada by Roda Verheyme, a German specialist in international law.

"Should Canada choose to remain a party to the protocol and also choose not to comply with its six per cent reduction targets, the enforcement branch of the Kyoto Protocol would have to apply legal consequences."

Under Kyoto, Canada is committed to cutting its greenhouse emissions six per cent from 1990 levels by 2008-2012.

Verheyme noted that actual emissions have risen 27 per cent since 1990, that measures to reverse the trend are lacking, and that the government is openly stating it can't meet the targets.

The Kyoto treaty does not provide fines for non-compliance, but Canada can be penalized with heavier emissions-cutting requirements in the next phase of the treaty.

Canada could be excluded from selling credits in the international emissions trading system, and required to put forward domestic policies to prove good faith.

But the main cost, perhaps, would be to Canada's international reputation.

"It would mean a branding of Canada as being in non-compliance," says Verheyme.

Bea Olivastri, CEO of Friends of the Earth, said the group is trying to force corrective action.

"What we've embarked on today is a very respectful but clear - something like tough love," she said. "We are not free to not act. We have a moral and a legal responsibility to act."

Robert Klager, a spokesman for Environment Minister Rona Ambrose, said he had not seen the legal opinion, but the Conservative government is taking the climate issue seriously and is looking for solutions "above and beyond Kyoto."

China and a group of developing countries have already lodged a complaint against a number of industrial countries, including Canada, for failing to file progress reports by Jan.1, 2006 as required.

Most of the countries named in the complaint have subsequently filed their reports, but Canada is one of six countries that haven't. Klager said he would check into the status of the missing report.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

China changes law to allow only highest court to approve death sentence

BEIJING (AP) - China's legislature on Tuesday barred all but the country's highest court from approving death sentences, a move that state media called the country's biggest change to capital punishment in more than 20 years. China is believed to account for most of the world's court-ordered executions, putting to death hundreds of people a year for crimes ranging from murder to such nonviolent offences as tax evasion. Human rights groups have been protesting what they call miscarriages of justice and the extensive, arbitrary use of capital punishment.

The change, which will take effect on Jan. 1, 2007, "is believed to be the most important reform of capital punishment in China in more than two decades," the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The Supreme People's Court announced last year it would start reviewing death sentences, ending a 23-year-old practice of allowing provincial courts to have final review. In June, state media said the court had begun hiring dozens of judges for the task.

Complaints have been rife in recent years that lower-level courts were mishandling death penalty cases.

"It's great news. This is a big step forward for China's legal system and human rights," said Li Heping, a prominent Chinese activist lawyer. "I think the purpose of allowing the Supreme Court to make the final decision is so that China can control the total number of death penalties and create an atmosphere of humanitarianism."

The government does not release comprehensive figures on executions but Amnesty International estimated in its 2005 report that at least 1,770 Chinese were executed that year. The total was believed to be much higher. At least 2,148 people were executed around the world last year, with 60 executions in the United States, the Amnesty report said.

Tuesday's amendment "deprives the provincial people's courts of the final say on issuing death sentences," Xinhua said. "Death penalties handed out by provincial courts must be reviewed and ratified by the Supreme People's Court."

Xiao Yang, the court's president, said it was "an important procedural step to prevent wrongful convictions."

"It will also give the defendants in death sentence cases one more chance to have their opinions heard," Xiao was quoted as saying by Xinhua.

Last year, a woman believed to have been murdered in the 1980s in the central province of Hunan reappeared alive, 16 years after the man convicted of killing her was executed.

At the time of the execution, state media reported that the court said the defendant had confessed. But Chinese police often are accused of torturing suspects into making confessions.

The high court itself also has been involved in controversial death penalty decisions.

In December 2003, a purported gang boss who said he was tortured into confessing to corruption charges was executed in the northeastern city of Shenyang in an anti-graft crackdown.

A provincial court had issued a reprieve, citing the possibility that the torture claims might be true, but the Supreme People's Court overruled that decision and ordered his immediate death.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Governor General and Jean-Daniel Lafond create a new forum for cultural dialogue with the launch of Art Matters at Rideau Hall

OTTAWA, Nov. 1 /CNW Telbec/ - Their Excellencies the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean, Governor General of Canada, and Mr. Jean-Daniel Lafond have added a forum for reflection and dialogue to the official ceremonies and presentation of the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards. Art Matters will give participants the opportunity to examine a particular artistic practice and explore its changes and challenges. The inaugural discussion on art, culture and society will take place on Friday, November 3, and Saturday, November 4, 2006, as part of the presentation of the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

"The Governor General's arts awards ceremonies are wonderful opportunities to honour this country's creative spirits and to highlight some of the great moments in Canadian culture," said the Governor General.

"The ceremonies give much needed encouragement to creativity by celebrating the various disciplines and are an extraordinary opportunity to bring together those who have paved the way in our artistic community and those whose young talents are beginning to emerge," added Mr. Lafond.

On November 3 and 4, Art Matters will focus on film, television broadcasting and the impact of new technologies on creativity and our society. These discussions will explore various forms of emerging technology, such as films for cell phones and the use of video (e.g. on Web sites, blogs and podcasts), and how more accessible tools for creating and disseminating art can encourage citizen expression. Finally, we will look at the power of virtual media and the influence of the imaginary world of video games.

Some thirty participants-producers, artists and academics-will be taking part. As well, the public is invited to share its thoughts on Art Matters by visiting the Citizen Voices Web site, which is actively involved in Art Matters through a forum and a blog on creativity and new technology. Visit the site today: www.citizenvoices.gg.ca

Rogers OMNI.1 Presents Toronto Mayoral Debate

Special Highlight Coverage of Toronto Mayoral Candidates’ Cross-cultural Debate

Rogers OMNI Television is pleased to give voice to the concerns of Toronto’s diverse voters with Toronto Mayoral Debate, a 30 minute special comprised of highlights from a debate among principal mayoral candidates and a selection of cross-cultural business professionals, held October 30th at the Velma Rogers Graham Theatre.

Toronto Mayoral Debate will air this upcoming Sunday, November 5th at 1:30 p.m. on Rogers OMNI.1, in association with:
·Toronto Chinese Business Association;
·Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce;
·Italian Chamber of Commerce;
·Federation of Portuguese Canadian Business & Professionals

All four organizations were co-presenters and participants in the October 30th event, along with Rogers OMNI Television.

Toronto Mayoral Debate will feature Mayor David Miller; Counselor Jane Pitfield and Former Liberal Party President, Stephen LeDrew responding directly to questions posed by selected representatives from all four groups as well as OMNI News journalists, Laura Albanese of OMNI News: Italian Edition; Nauman Khan of South Asian Edition; Harry Teng of Mandarin Edition and João Vicente of Portuguese Edition.

Questions asked of the candidates were crafted to reflect issues of importance, not only to the local Chinese Italian, Portuguese and South Asian communities, but also to Torontonians in general – including such hot buttons as public transportation, affordable housing and what to do with Toronto’s trash.

The result is a lively and informative discussion from the respective platforms of key mayoral candidates.

Mediators tapped to avert Canadian actors' strike

By Etan Vlessing

TORONTO (Hollywood Reporter) - Provincial mediators are being lined up to restart stalled labor talks between Canadian actors and North American producers as a strike threat looms over U.S. film and TV shoots north of the border.

The Alliance of Canadian Cinema Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA), which represents 21,000 domestic performers, called for mediation last week to bring about a new independent production agreement.

That was after talks that began October 23 collapsed when producers demanded actors take pay cuts of 10%-25% for minimum daily rates paid on film and TV productions shot here. ACTRA, on the other hand, is seeking a 15% raise in minimum rates over three years for homegrown shoots and a 40% jump over five years for U.S. productions in Canada.

A mediator has been named in Quebec and another is set to be named in Ontario later this week, said Stephen Waddell, ACTRA's national executive director and lead negotiator.

On the other side of the bargaining table, the Canadian Film and Television Production Assn. (CFTPA) said it would prefer a national mediator and reiterated its charge that ACTRA was playing the conciliation card early in the negotiations as a prelude to a possible strike early in the new year.

"It's very clear to us that ACTRA wants to go on strike, which is unfortunate," said John Barrack, CFTPA general counsel and lead negotiator,

The producers offered to make any new indie production agreement retroactive in return for ACTRA agreeing to a single national mediator.

Waddell insisted ACTRA was not seeking an unnecessary strike to back its demands at the bargaining table, but rather was complying with Canadian labor law by applying for mediation to work out a deal. The existing agreement expires December 31.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
© Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.

STRINGS ON THE DRIVE

CALLING OUT FOR ARTISTS & VENUES

The Festival: February 2-4, 2007

What: it is all about string-instruments and their
players... a community celebration with music up-and-down
the Commercial Drive area... be a part of it!

The Concept: venues along "The Drive" hire string-instrument
artists or provide "open mic" time to be programmed at a
later date. Patrons purchase tickets or book their
lunch/dinner tables to assist to various performances.

VENUES SIGN-UP: We are currently signing up official venues
for the Festival; if you do business up-and-down the
Commercial Drive and would like to participate we want to
hear from you. Email miratecart@canada.com

You can plan the events or open up your venue and the
Festival will plan it all for you!

LOWER MAINLAND...GREATER VANCOUVER... COMMERCIAL DRIVE
citizens, residents:

Are you an acoustic strings-instrument player (professional
or hobbiest)? We are creating a list - make sure you are on it.

Are you a maker/builder of string instruments? We want to know.

Do you sale string instruments? We would like to provide
info for our patrons.

Do you teach string instruments? We are creating a teacher list.

Do you want to learn a string instrument: guitar, ukelele,
banjo, etc? We have teachers.

Send us a message via email

We are building a site at http://www.stringsonthedrive.com

The event is supported by the Commercial Drive Business
Society, Mirateca Arts Management, Portuguese Benevolent
Society, Lusitania monthly - join the support list!
miratecart@canada.com

Seniors Multicultural Arts and Crafts Fair

The 411 Seniors Centre Society is pleased to present this event to honour and showcase the cultural diversity and artistic talent of our ethnic seniors.

The fair will feature:
- Fascinating Ethnocultural Displays
- Hands-on crafts making workshops
- Lively cross-cultural interaction

*FREE* Admission
Bring Family and Friends Along!

Thursday, November 16, 2006
12:30 to 3:00 pm

411 Seniors Centre
411 Dunsmuir Street, Vancouver

For additional information, please call Jose Mendoza at 604 684 8171

Sony Corp. says U.S. Justice Department is probing its electronics unit

TOKYO (AP) - Sony Corp. said Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Justice is probing its electronics unit. The company received a subpoena from the Justice Department's antitrust division seeking information about Sony's static random access memory, or SRAM, business, company spokesman Atsuo Omagari said. Sony intends to co-operate with the investigation, which it described as an industrywide probe without elaborating. Omagari declined to provide other details about the probe.

SRAM is a kind of computer memory that is faster and more reliable that DRAM, or dynamic random access memory. It does not need to be refreshed like DRAM, and it is also more expensive.

SRAM is found in relatively small quantities in personal computers. It's also used in disk drives, communications equipment and networking gear.

In 2005, Sony produced US$27.7 million worth of SRAM. The product is made by outside manufactures for Sony, which in turn sells the memory chips to other electronics makers, Omagari said.

He would not say who manufactures the chips for Sony or who Sony's customers were.

Earlier this month, U.S.-based chipmaker Cypress Semiconductor Corp. said its SRAM operations were also under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

A separate U.S. Justice investigation into price-fixing among DRAM companies has so far resulted in more than a dozen charges against individuals and more than $731 million in fines against Samsung Electronics Co., Elpida Memory Inc., Infineon Technologies AG and Hynix Semiconductor Inc.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

China says North Korea agrees to rejoin nuclear disarmament talks

BEIJING (AP) - North Korea agreed Tuesday to rejoin six-nation nuclear disarmament talks in a surprise diplomatic breakthrough three weeks after the communist regime conducted its first known atomic test, the Chinese government said. Chinese, U.S. and North Korean envoys to the negotiations held a day of unpublicized talks in Beijing during which North Korea agreed to return to the larger six-nation talks on its nuclear programs, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.

"The three parties agreed to resume the six-party talks at the earliest convenient time," the Chinese statement said.

The agreement is one of the first signs of easing tensions since North Korea conducted the underground detonation on Oct. 9, defying warnings from both the United States and Japan, and its staunchest ally, China.

If the six-party talks resume, it would mark a diplomatic victory for Beijing, which in the wake of the test had argued against punishing North Korea too harshly, in order to leave open a path for diplomacy.

South Korea welcomed the North Korean agreement.

"The government hopes that the six-party talks will resume at an early date as agreed and that an agreement will be reached on how to implement" a prior accord under which Pyongyang pledged to abandon its nuclear program, South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman Choo Kyu-ho said.

Seoul also has been trying to strike a delicate balance in punishing the North for its nuclear test; seeking to avoid aggravating its volatile neighbor while imposing sanctions according to an unanimous U.N. Security Council resolution.

The U.N. resolution calls for a ban on the sale of major arms to Pyongyang and inspection of cargo entering and leaving the country. It also calls for the freezing of assets of businesses supplying North Korea's nuclear and ballistic weapons programs, as well as restrictions on sales of luxury goods and travel bans on North Korean officials.

The six-nation arms talks were last held in November 2005, where no progress was made on implementing the September 2005 agreement where the North pledged to abandon its nuclear program in exchange for security guarantees and aid.

Just after that agreement, the North had demanded a nuclear reactor for power - a request that was quickly rejected by the other sides at the talks.

However, the North then argued that it wouldn't return to the negotiations until the U.S. desisted from a campaign to sever it from the international financial system for Pyongyang's alleged complicity in counterfeiting and money laundering to sell weapons of mass destruction. The North viewed those measures as proof of Washington's "hostile" policy against it and thinly veiled desire for regime change.

The U.S. refused and said the issue was unrelated. To try and press its case, the North launched a series of missile in July - including a long-range model believed capable of reaching parts of the U.S.

A U.N. committee has been determining how to implement the sanctions over the atomic test, measures banning the North's weapons trade.

Washington has been seeking to gather support for the sanctions, and getting the North's top two trading partners - China and South Korea - to pressure the regime.

North Korea is believed to have enough radioactive material to make about a half-dozen bombs, but estimates vary due to limited intelligence about its nuclear program.

The apparent North Korean agreement followed a day of typically bellicose rhetoric from Pyongyang.

North Korea claimed that the United States, "scared" by the North's nuclear test, conducted some 200 spy flights over the communist country during October.

"The ... aerial espionage underscores the need for the army and the people of the (North Korea) to bolster the war deterrent for self-defense in every way to foil the U.S. imperialists' moves for a war of aggression," the North's official Korean Central News Agency said.

North Korea also warned South Korea on Tuesday against participating in a U.S.-led international drive to stop and search ships carrying weapons of mass destruction, saying involvement would bring about unspecified "catastrophic consequences."

The warning released by Pyongyang's official news agency came as South Korea is considering whether to fully participate in the U.S.-led Proliferation Security Initiative aimed at interdicting shipments of weapons of mass destruction and other suspected cargo.

Seoul has been reluctant to take full part in the initiative out of concern it may anger North Korea and complicate efforts to resolve the international standoff.

Instead, it has sent observers to drills and attended briefings.

Associated Press reporters Burt Herman, Bo-mi Lim and Meraiah Foley in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Vancouver's Asian film fest celebrates 10 years

(CBC) - The Vancouver Asian Film Festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a showcase of 40 films and documentaries, primarily from North American directors, and a special presentation by Canadian director Mina Shum.

The five-day festival began Wednesday.

Shum, whose 1994 feature film Double Happiness starring Sandra Oh received rave reviews, will host a special talk about how she writes her screenplays.

Movies being shown at the festival offer a vast array of genres from comedies to short films to animation.

Films of note include Ham Tran’s feature debut, Journey From The Fall, a Canadian premiere, which chronicles one family’s plight after the fall of Saigon.

Other foreign films include The Shopaholics, by Hong Kong director Wai Ka-Fai, about love and obsession; and Japan’s Shosuke Murakami’s Train Man: Densha Otoko, based on a comic about a geek who falls in love.

The majority of films were either produced in North America or directed by someone from North America.

Mighty Warriors of Comedy, a documentary that follows an Asian-American sketch-comedy troupe’s move to Los Angeles from San Francisco, will be presented along with a live performance by Vancouver’s own Pan-Asian comedy group, Assaulted Fish.

The festival will also be screening Red Doors by first-time director Georgia Lee, who apprenticed under Martin Scorsese on Gangs of New York. The movie follows a man who is planning to run away from his dysfunctional life and family.

Red Doors captured the Best Narrative Feature Award at the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City.

In the documentary section, director Karin Lee explores what it’s like to grow up in Canada with a Communist father in Comrade Dad, while Xiaoli Zhou examines a free-love tribal society in China dominated by women in The Women’s Kingdom.

Other Canadian offerings include the NFB animation piece Asthma Tech from Jonathan Ng; Vancouverite John Penhall’s Inconvenience - a cautionary tale concerning grocery store clerks and lottery tickets; and the closing night feature, Ang Pamana - The Inheritance by director Romeo Candido.

Ang Pamana centres on a Filipino-Canadian teen and his sister who voyage to the Philippines following the death of their grandmother. It’s described as a “suspenseful tale drawn from Filipino folklore.”

Some of the screenings will be hosted by celebrity Asian performers, including Grace Park of the cult hit Battlestar Galactica, Steph Song who stars in the Douglas Coupland-penned Everything’s Gone Green and Rick Tae, who has starred in the television series Godiva’s and can currently be seen on CBC’s Intelligence.

© the CBC, 2006

STATIC

Accomplished Vancouver dancers present diverse works in electrifying mixed- program
A Connecting Community Dance Series presentation

Thursday, Nov. 2nd, Friday, Nov. 3rd and Saturday, Nov. 4th 2006

MACC Studio Theatre (Moberly Arts & Cultural Centre)
7646 Prince Albert Street, Vancouver, BC

8 PM - Tickets $15, available at door one hour prior to show time
604-696-1229 www.mysunset.net/macc.htm

The ninth installment of the original Connecting Community Dance Series promises a dynamic display of dance diversity.

STATIC features new solo works danced and created by three of Vancouver’s most powerful male dancers, Kevin Bergsma, Donald Sales (Nov. 2,3) and Chengxin Wei (Nov. 2,3). The contemporary pieces reflect each dancer’s diverse background in the traditional styles of Ballet, Butoh and Chinese Classical dance.

Three colourful and dynamic duets offer insight into various cultural traditions. Long-time partners and renowned artists Rosario Ancer and Victor Kolstee (Nov. 4) exhibit the complexity and passion of Flamenco. Contemporary dancer Desirée Dunbar and Bharata Natyam dancer Sudnya Naik explore commonalities in their two unique art forms. Raakhi Sinha and Gurpreet Sian give a lively interpretation of the popular Punjabi dance, Bhangra.

STATIC highlights the work of three distinctive female contemporary choreographers. Chick Snipper, artistic director of Dancestabat since 1985, is heralded for her theatrical approach. Her solo “The Return” is performed by Nanaimo dancer Holly Bright (Nov. 4). Anne Cooper, veteran Vancouver dancer and recipient of the Isadora Award for Excellence presents a quirky, engaging solo. Natasha Lutz and Vanessa Goodman (also dancers with Judith Garay’s dancersdancing) premiere a vibrant, energetic duet.

Community dance company stARTdance, performs the work of Artistic Director Desirée Dunbar. stARTdance is a unique program for the pre-professional/ recreational dancer who wants to further develop technical and performance skills in a professional setting.

The Connecting Community Dance Series, produced by Desirée Dunbar (INSIGHT Performance) in partnership with MACC Studio Theatre, is committed to the presentation of dance that reflects diverse cultures and highlights the vision of professional, emerging and community dance artists. This series provides a venue for local choreographers to present their work in a collaborative performance.

Raymond Chow's Mata Hari Dance and Music

Saturday November 4th 2006
6 - 9 pm at RAYMOND CHOW ART STUDIO
#144 11782 River Road, Richmond, B.C.
(north River Road, between Shell & 5 Road)

meet our MATA HARI lead dancer AMY HAMILTON
New paintings, drawings, New music from RAYMOND CHOW's MATA HARI

RSVP email : raymondchow3333@gmail.com or 604-274-3587

To view Raymond Chow's Mata Hari Dance and Music
Please turn on your computer speakers and
visit http://66.227.124.150/rchow/mh/index.htm

Talk: Freedom & Salvation in Chinese Thought by Professor Puett

Wednesday, November 8, 2006

6:15 pm refreshments & receptions
7:00 pm Talk

Auditorium, Asian Center
1871 West Mall, Vancouver

Professor Puett's talk will explore notions of freedom and salvation in early China,discussing how these views emerged, how they developed, and the implications they have had for later Chinese history. Michael J. Puett is Professor of Chinese History and Chair of the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University. His research focuses on the intellectual, cultural, and political history of early China, and his major publications include To Become a God: Cosmology, Sacrifice, and Self-Divinization in Early China (Harvard, 2002) and The Ambivalence of Creation: Debates Concerning Innovation and Artifice in Early China (Stanford, 2001).

China plans to go high-tech to check length, condition of Great Wall

BEIJING (AP) - China plans to use satellites and other high technology to check the length of the Great Wall and find ways to better protect the country's most famous landmark, a government agency said Monday. The wall weaves for thousands of kilometres through a dozen provinces and regions across northern China. The wall, really many unconnected walls collectively known as the Great Wall, traverses remote areas, making its exact length and actual condition difficult to assess.

"We will use remote sensing, aviation and information technology. Scientific analysis allows us to grasp the current condition of the Great Wall and update the current regulations on its protection," Tong Mingkang, vice-director of the State Bureau of Cultural Relics, said in an online interview posted on the central government's main Web site.

Tong said the survey could take two to three years. Although many previous surveys have been conducted, he said large sections of the wall were not properly protected due to a lack of detailed information.

"It's imperative to hold such a large-scale investigation to build up a scientific and integral record for the Great Wall," he said.

The earliest sections of the wall were built more than 20 centuries ago to guard against Mongols and other invaders. Other sections were added over the centuries, while many parts have fallen down or been pulled down by villagers who used the bricks to build houses.

Its length has been estimated at from 4,830 to 6,437 kilometres, but some guidebooks say dilapidated sections in remote areas have been discovered as recently as 2002.

Tourist encroachment also has been a problem in recent years, with state media saying that near Badaling, north of Beijing, almost every brick on a popular section of the wall has been carved with people's names or other graffiti.

State media reported earlier this year that China planned to recruit local villagers to guard against vandalism.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

SKorea president reshuffles key cabinet posts in wake of NKorea nuclear test

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea's president announced a reshuffling of key cabinet security posts Wednesday, naming a close adviser as Seoul's top diplomat amid other leadership changes in the wake of North Korea's nuclear test. Song Min-soon, the presidential security adviser who is believed to be the key force behind Seoul's policies on North Korea, will become foreign minister. He replaces Ban Ki-moon, who is set to become secretary-general of the United Nations next year.

President Roh Moo-hyun's office also announced new heads of the Unification Ministry, Defence Ministry and the main spy agency, the National Intelligence Service.

Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok offered to resign last month to apologize for policy failures after the North conducted its first-ever test of an atomic weapon. He will be replaced by Lee Jae-joung, a former legislator from the ruling Uri Party.

Defence Minister Yoon Kwang-ung said he would step down after reaching an agreement last month with the U.S. on Seoul retaining wartime command of its troops. The new defence chief will be Kim Jang-soo, who is now chief of staff of the army.

Kim Seung-kyu, head of the National Intelligence Service, also pledged to quit to give the president a free hand in reorganizing the cabinet. However, his move came after the launch of an investigation into some members of a small political party for allegedly spying for North Korea - and local media reports have hinted the scandal could be connected to Kim's decision.

South Korea's new spy chief will be Kim Man-bok, now deputy director of the agency.

The reshuffle came as South Korea grapples with its volatile neighbour's nuclear ambitions. On Tuesday, Pyongyang agreed to return to international arms talks for the first time in a year in a diplomatic breakthrough that helped ease tensions that have spiraled since the Oct. 9 nuclear test.

The reorganization is not expected to lead to any policy change, considering that Song, the new foreign minister, has overseen all major security issues as Roh's main security adviser.

Song, a 58-year-old career diplomat, served as Seoul's main nuclear envoy last year. He has asserted a greater say for Seoul in its relations with the United States, one of Roh's long-time policy principles.

The new unification minister, Lee, 62, is a Catholic priest-turned-politician and is considered a staunch supporter of Seoul's engagement policy toward North Korea.

Lee, who worked as a chief campaign manager for Roh during the 2002 presidential vote, was arrested in 2004 for accepting illegal political funds during the campaign. He was later sentenced to a fine, but received a presidential pardon this year.

The unification minister represents the government in cabinet-level talks with North Korea, the highest regular dialogue channel between the two Koreas. The meetings convene several times a year to discuss measures to boost exchanges and ease tension across the world's most heavily fortified border.

But such contacts have been suspended since the North test-fired a series of missiles in July and Seoul suspended aid shipments to the North in protest.

Relations have warmed significantly between the Koreas since the only summit of the two countries' leaders in 2000. Tension persists, however, because of the North's pursuit of nuclear weapons.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

NKorea says it wants to resolve U.S. financial restrictions at nuclear talks

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - North Korea said Wednesday it would return to nuclear disarmament talks in an effort to get access to frozen overseas bank accounts, a vital source of hard currency for the impoverished and isolated communist country.
Stepping back from provocative moves after conducting its first-ever nuclear test three weeks ago, the North said it hoped to resolve U.S. financial restrictions at resumed six-nation arms talks that it has boycotted for a year.

But Pyongyang made only indirect mention of last month's headline-grabbing atomic test and didn't say whether it remained committed to an earlier agreement to abandon its nuclear ambitions - a possible sign that negotiators could be facing another round of frustrating dialogue when the talks resume.

North Korea also emphasized that a direct meeting with the United States during previously unpublicized negotiations Tuesday in Beijing, had made the diplomatic breakthrough possible. U.S. President George W. Bush, who has long shunned direct talks with Pyongyang, credited China's mediation for the agreement.

The North has refused for the past year to return to the arms talks in anger over the U.S. financial restrictions, which blacklisted a Macau bank where the regime held accounts.

U.S. officials had sought to rally other countries to prevent the North from doing business abroad, saying all transactions involving Pyongyang were suspected of being involved in counterfeiting and money laundering.

The financial moves are believed to have hit the country's leadership in particular, who indulge their tastes for luxury goods while the vast majority of North Koreans live in poverty.

On Wednesday, the North's Foreign Ministry said Pyongyang decided to return to the arms talks "on the premise that the issue of lifting financial sanctions will be discussed and settled between the (North) and the U.S. within the framework of the six-party talks."

The North barely alluded to its Oct. 9 nuclear test in the statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency, noting that the country "recently took a self-defensive countermeasure against the U.S. daily increasing nuclear threat and financial sanctions against it."

The nuclear talks - which include China, Japan, Russia, the United States and the two Koreas - reached an agreement in September 2005 where the North pledged to abandon its nuclear program in exchange for aid and security guarantees, but there was little progress toward implementing the accord.

The U.S. had previously maintained that the financial issue was a matter of law enforcement separate from the nuclear talks. But in Beijing on Tuesday, the chief U.S. nuclear envoy, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, said Washington agreed to take up the matter in the revived arms negotiations.

However, there were conflicting signals from the United States. White House press secretary Tony Snow later insisted the United States made no promises to link the financial dispute to the nuclear one, but only agreed that "issues like that may be discussable at some future time."

The North emphasized Wednesday that the breakthrough on returning to the nuclear talks was made possible by that bilateral meeting with the Americans, something Pyongyang had long sought.

The U.S. envoy Hill said Tuesday that the nuclear talks could resume as early as November or December, but acknowledged the negotiations still had a long way to go.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

HSBC Bank Canada Q3 profit rises 22.1 per cent to $138 million

VANCOUVER (CP) - HSBC Bank Canada said Tuesday its third-quarter profit rose 22.1 per cent to $138 million from $113 million in the same period a year-before on "broad-based growth" in revenues. The Vancouver-based bank, the Canadian subsidiary of London-based HSBC Holdings PLC, said its total revenue for the three months ended Sept. 30 was $442 million, compared with a year-earlier $406 million.

"Investments in areas such as wealth management and payments and cash management have helped to grow non-interest revenue on a year-on-year basis and throughout this year," president and CEO Lindsay Gordon said in a release.

"In particular, a growth in loan volumes drove net interest income and non-interest revenue upward, with the latter also benefiting from higher securitization and wealth-management income."

HSBC Bank Canada's return on average common equity was 23.0 per cent for the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with 20.9 per cent at Sept. 30, 2005, while total assets were $55.9 billion compared to $49.4 billion.

Total funds under management was $22.4 billion at Sept. 30, compared with a year-earlier $19.9 billion.

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Angelina Jolie has set up independent group to administer project in Cambodia

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Angelina Jolie has set up an independent Cambodian organization to administer a conservation project for remote northwestern areas of the country, the director of the new group said Monday. Jolie terminated the contract with Cambodian Vision in Development and U.S. conservation group WildAid, which had co-managed the project, in December, said Stephan Bognar, executive director of the Maddox Jolie Project. The new group is named for Jolie's five-year-old son Maddox, who was adopted from Cambodia in 2002.

The 31-year-old actress has promised up to US$1.3 million over five years for the forest conservation program, which was approved by the Cambodia government in 2003.

Mounh Sarath, director of Cambodian Vision in Development, said Monday that Jolie had violated the agreement "under which she agreed to provide funds to CVD."

Trevor Neilson, the philanthropic and political adviser for Jolie and her partner, Brad Pitt, denied the actress had reneged on any agreement.

"A decision was made to spend the money in a new way that would be more effective for the people of Cambodia," Neilson said. "No agreement was broken. There was no reneging on any commitment."

"Angelina has been funding projects in Cambodia for the last three years and is committed to doing her part to improve the lives of the Cambodian people," he added.

Scenes for Jolie's 2001 movie, "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider," were filmed at Cambodia's famed Angkor Wat temple.

Jolie and Pitt also have a one-year-old daughter, Zahara, who was adopted from Ethiopia. Jolie gave birth to the couple's daughter, Shiloh, in Namibia in May .

© The Canadian Press, 2006

Thai queen cautions against women's racy dancing at Buddhist ceremony

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - Sexy dancing and Buddhism don't mix, or so says Thailand's Queen Sirikit, who issued a command cautioning against lascivious behaviour during Buddhist events, local newspapers reported Monday. After seeing television coverage of women dancing in racy outfits at a Buddhist ceremony in northeastern Thailand, the queen sent a letter to the Culture Ministry saying that "Buddhists, in general, should always bear in mind what is good for the image of the country," the Nation newspaper reported.

"Any shows or performances organized in association with any Buddhist festival should be held with respect for Lord Buddha and Buddhism," Culture Minister Kaisri Sri-arun quoted the queen as saying in the statement.

The Buddhist festival in Nong Khai province showed the performers - known as "coyote dancers" - wearing provocative dresses and using sexually explicit moves, the Nation said.

The images were broadcast on television over two consecutive days and were published in national newspapers.

"The repetition of images and the act could mislead (young girls) into doing the same," Kaisri. "The media needs to use very good judgment on which things should be relayed to the public, and which should not."

Kaisri said laws should be passed to control the publication or broadcasting of inappropriate material.

Scantily clad women are not uncommon in Bangkok, where prostitution is widespread and widely accepted. However, the country remains relatively conservative, with frequent speeches warning against the dangers of women wearing revealing clothes such as spaghetti-string tank tops.

© The Canadian Press, 2006